Jackie set to Abba great time on stage

COMIC Jackie Clune has won a starring role in the new production of Mamma Mia! coming to Edinburgh in the spring.

The Fringe veteran will play the key part of Donna in the Abba-inspired musical, which is set for another sell-out run at the Edinburgh Playhouse.

Clune will be joined in the cast by fellow funnygirl Julia Deakin, who has appeared on TV in the likes of The Brief and Spaced. She is playing the part of Tanya, one of Donna's best friends.

Nearly two thirds of the tickets for the next run of Mamma Mia! - which is at the Playhouse from March 29 until May 20 - have already been snapped up.

Clune said: "After ten years of Augusts on the Fringe it will be great to be in Edinburgh and not have to step over drunken comics to get to the bar.

"I'm so excited to be appearing in Mamma Mia! I can hardly breathe, which is just as well, because those white lycra catsuits are pretty snug."

The Playhouse was besieged with inquiries for tickets for last year's run of Mamma Mia!, which saw more than two-thirds of all seats sold out before it even started, raking in more than 4.5 million at the box office.

Many fans were forced to turn to internet auction site eBay, where seats were on sale at vastly-inflated prices, despite warnings from the producers of the show.

The show, which has grossed almost 600 million worldwide to date, will be heading to Edinburgh next year via South Africa, Estonia, Portugal, Switzerland and Austria.