David Morrissey is widely regarded as one of the UK's most accomplished and versatile actors, having tackled roles including a critically acclaimed portrayal of chancellor Gordon Brown in last year's Channel 4 drama The Deal.
But even viewers familiar with the broad range of Morrissey's work are in for a surprise with his new BBC1 drama, Blackpool, in which he plays the all singing, all dancing central character Ripley Holden.
Blackpool, inspired by the works of Dennis Potter and the movie Moulin Rouge, features Morrissey and other actors - including Sarah Parish and John Thomson - performing dance routines and belting out tunes from the likes of Queen, The Smiths, Slade, Kenny Rogers, Alison Moyet, Billy Idol and Sandie Shaw.
The song and dance routines in Blackpool, which is being billed as a "comic musical thriller" rather than a traditional musical, are incorporated into the action in the style of Potter's Singing Detective.
Morrissey's Holden is a small time businessman with big dreams, the owner of a Blackpool amusement arcade who believes he can become a Las Vegas style casino and hotel boss when the UK's gambling laws are relaxed.
However, his plans are thrown into disarray when a young man is found murdered in his arcade.
Parish plays Holden's neglected wife and Thomson takes the role of his business associate.
"In Blackpool you will see David Morrissey as you've never seen him before, shaking his booty," said the show's executive producer Laura Mackie.
"It's part thriller, part song and dance, but not a straight musical. We had a rule that every song had to drive the narrative forward. There are various points of reference. We talked about Potter - though we're not trying to do Potter - we talked about Moulin Rouge and Rock Follies," Ms Mackie added.
"The actors are miming to real songs, but some of them have good singing voices and we will be blending their performances into the final version," she said.
Each 60-minute episode in the six part series will feature three or four musicals numbers, with songs including Billy Idol's White Wedding and The Boy With The Thorn In His Side, by The Smiths.
Blackpool has been written by Peter Bowker, the creator of award-winning BBC2 disability drama Flesh and Blood.
Ms Mackie said Blackpool was conceived as a six-part serial, but ends on a cliffhanger and could become a returning series.
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