Gary Lucy talks ahead of The Full Monty at the Birmingham Hippodrome - interview

Or, at least he was. But for the past year or more, Gary Lucy has been earning a living by getting his kit off. The former contestant on ITV's Dancing on Ice has been starring in The Full Monty, which reaches Birmingham's Hippodrome on Monday and runs until November 19.

"I'm doing my 400th show," he says. "But the cast has changed a few times and that freshens things up."

The Full Monty (currently) also stars Anthony Lewis, Andrew Dunn, Louis Emerick, Chris Fountain, Kai Owen and a cast of 14. The award-winning touring production is based on his smash-hit film and adapted for the stage by Oscar-winning writer Simon Beaufoy.

It is set in 1997 when six out-of-work Sheffield steelworkers with nothing to lose take the world by storm. Their story still resonates today, probably more so now than ever with the continued job losses nationwide.

The 34-year-old Essex lad said: "Obviously, it was an iconic British film back in the day and even now it's really not dated. You've got it all set back in the Thatcher era but a lot of the characters are very relevant today. There's the body conscious Dave, Gerald who is the older guy who is very proud but is living a lie and is too ashamed to talk to his wife. Then there's Gaz who's lost his self esteem and his money and could be losing his kid.

"You really feel for these guys. All they knew was working in the steel works and when that was taken away from them they had nothing else.

"It is very funny but the characters all have their own stories. Gaz needs money to pay maintenance for his kid, but they all have their own problems."

Lucy found the transition from TV to stage quite challenging. He was best known for his roles as Danny Pennant in EastEnders, DS Will Fletcher in The Bill, Kyle Pascoe in Footballer's Wives and Luke Morgan in Hollyoaks.

"It was a big challenge and quite scary, but what an opportunity. To play the lead in the stage production of such an iconic British movie was something I had to grab with both hands.

"It's a play that is all about camaraderie and friendship and we've really got that with this cast, which is brilliant. Jack Ryder (the former EastEnders star turned director who is helming the show) also has got great energy and great fresh ideas.

"You can just feel the people in the audience know someone like the characters in the show and they buy into the characters. They identify with the people who are up on stage. To be honest, the audiences go mental for it and it's cleverly written. It was put together by an Oscar-winning writer.

"Of course, it's totally different to doing TV because it's a live audience so the adrenalin is going and anything can happen. There's such a buzz and it's a very different thing. I wouldn't say I prefer one or the other.

"At the end of the day, I'm very pleased to be in it, and I count myself very lucky."

By Andy Richardson