TWO smash-hit shows from the Edinburgh Festival Fringe are en route to Wallingford after entertaining audiences in the West End.

Coming to the Corn Exchange, Julie Madly Deeply and Eric and Little Ern celebrate three of the most adored figures in showbusiness — film star Julie Andrews, of The Sound of Music fame, and legendary comedy double act Eric Morecambe and Ernie Wise.

Theatre manager John Warburton said he was delighted to be able to bring the shows to the town.

“We hope audiences will enjoy a taste of the West End on their own doorstep,” he said.

Written and performed by the award-winning singer, West End actress and Fascinating Aida star Sarah-Louise Young, Julie Madly Deeply proves a cheeky yet affectionate exploration of the star’s life and her relationship with her adoring fans. Did the goody goody Mary Poppins ever long to let her hair down at the end of a hard day or did Maria Von Trapp ever wish she was considered sexy instead of saccharine?

Songs from musicals including Mary Poppins, The Sound of Music and My Fair Lady are intertwined with stories and anecdotes about Andrews’ own life, from her beginnings as a child star to the recent challenge of losing her singing voice. Young was recently highlighted by Time Out as one of London’s top ten cabaret performers.

Julie Madly Deeply comes to the Corn Exchange on Saturday, February 15, at 7.45pm, with tickets at £12, following an Australian tour, an Edinburgh Festival run and a season in the West End.

Three weeks later, on Friday, March 7, the Corn Exchange will be playing host to Eric and Little Ern which pays homage to the much-loved Morecambe and Wise.

Created and performed by Ian Ashpitel and Jonty Stephens, the show has its origins in a short sketch which the pair developed into a full show.

Together, they revive memories of a bygone era, recreating some of the duo’s finest television and stage performances through the use of classic sketches alongside new material devised by the show’s performers. Newly extended from the hour-long Edinburgh show, the script explores the dynamic that made Morecambe and Wise one of Britain’s most enduringly popular double acts.

The sbow’s producers were granted permission by comedy script writer Eddie Braben to feature favourite moments from his work just weeks before his recent death last year. Together with further classic material licensed from the estates of Hills and Green, who wrote for Morcambe and Wisein their early career, the show mixes in new scenes exploring the public and private personas of the duo.

Ashpitel and Stephens first met at Birmingham School of Speech and Drama 30 years ago and individually they have a wide variety of stage and television credits, ranging from BBC drama to Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre.

Tickets for Eric and Little Ern are £15.

Book tickets for both shows at: www.cornexchange.org.uk/MRWindex.html