The singer and brother of former Steps star, Lisa, has already played Prince Charming but will finally be able to play it minus the guilt with his wife of almost a year, Michelle Heaton, playing the lead role.

"I've done Cinderella before a couple of times and Michelle has come to watch so it'll be nice this year that it's Michelle I'm kissing and I can go home without having her give me evils," he joked.

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Liberty-X star Michelle, added: "This is the first time we've worked together so it'll be nice but interesting. It's going to be a good laugh and that's what panto is all about."

The panto also gives the happy couple, who wed in October 2006, the chance to spend Christmas with Michelle's family in her hometown, Gateshead.

And Michelle, who flew straight from filming in Ireland where she is a judge on the Irish version of X-Factor, is looking forward to a quiet Christmas after suffering a blow when she was diagnosed with heart problems last year.

"I thought I was going to have to cancel my wedding," she said. "But I think that was the problem. I was too stressed. It's been fine the last year."

Andy added: "I think planning the wedding didn't help. Michelle did 99.9 per cent of the planning and I didn't do hardly anything because she wouldn't let me.

"I wanted her to have the wedding she wanted."

* CINDERELLA runs at the Sunderland Empire from Saturday, December 8, to Sunday, January 6. For more information on tickets phone the 24-hour booking line on 0870 6021130 or log on to www.sunderlandempire.org.uk