Paul Chuckle prepares for stage debut at National Theatre

The Rise and Fall of Little Voice tells the story of as a shy girl who rarely ventures outside her bedroom, until her talent for imitating famous singers is recognised by a local promoter.

Elliott will perform alongside Silent Witness actress Francesca Mills, who will play the title role, and Waterloo Road star Jill Halfpenny, who will play her mother, Mari Hoff.

After a career including, TV, film, pantomime, circus and now regular DJ sets, he said adapting had been a challenge.

“It’s completely different,” he said.

“It’s the first show I’ve done in many, many years without saying ‘to me, to you’.

“The lines are slowly sinking into my brain.

“I’ve found that hard. Barry and I ad libbed a lot when we were on stage.

“We had lots of fun, we used to fall about laughing at each other, but there’s none of that, I’ve got to be word perfect.

“TV is easier. If you go wrong it’s ‘cut, do it again’ but on stage you can’t.

“When me and Barry worked together we loved things going wrong, but you can’t do that in a live play.”

One thing Elliott said he did know well ahead of stepping into the shoes of club promoter Mr Boo was the world of working men’s clubs.

“Jim Cartwright, who wrote the play, he thought I would be perfect for the part of Mr Boo,” he said.

“I was working in working men’s clubs all my career, and he knew I was doing that.

“We did all the clubs in the North East, South Wales, Midlands, North Wales, wherever we could get the work, we grew up in working men’s clubs. Not an easy life, may I tell you. Not an easy life.

“You never knew whether they’re going to love you or hate you, and there was no real middle ground.

“They were either a fabulous audience or a terrible audience, or put it the other way, we were terrible or brilliant.”