Actor and comedian, Ricky Tomlinson is to return to the stage in a new musical comedy that celebrates the best of Irish culture.

Irish Annie’s will perform around the March St Patricks Day celebrations, visiting Stafford Gatehouse Theatre on Monday 20 March.

Irish Annie’s is a celebration of Irish culture, from the music to the comedy, featuring the well-known live 6-piece band The Shenanigans.

Meet landlady Annie and her regular madcap customers for a fun night out of comedy, music and mayhem, featuring original tracks written for the show by Asa Murphy, along with your all-time favourite Irish tunes including Galway Shawl, Tell Me Ma, Dirty Old Town, Whiskey In The Jar, Danny Boy and many more.

Ricky Tomlinson will perform as himself as a celebrity guest in the pub. Ricky is a much-loved actor and comedian living all his life in Liverpool, he is best known for his roles as Bobby Grant in Brookside, DCI Charlie Wise in Cracker and Jim Royle in The Royle Family, he also played the title character in the film Mike Bassett: England Manager. He is a very keen musician playing both the banjo and harmonica.

Ricky said “This show is a delight to be part of, with a wonderful cast of characters and beautiful original and classic Irish music. Come and enjoy the show, I guarantee you will have a ball”.

The show also stars Catherine Rice as Irish Annie, Asa Murphy as Seamus Murphy, Nathan Murphy as Porky the Postman, Sam Conlan as Noel Singen-Smithe and Pauline Donovan as Moira the Money Lender.

Tickets for Irish Annie's are now on sale at gatehousetheatre.co.uk.