From East End to West End: John Patridge joins A Chorus Line

From East End to West End: John Partridge (Getty Images)

EastEnders star John Partridge is to head the cast of A Chorus Line when it returns to the West End for the first time in more than three decades.

Partridge, who has become familiar as Albert Square's Christian Clarke and as a judge on BBC talent hunt Over The Rainbow, will join the show when it opens in February.

The actor, who has also appeared in Starlight Express, Cats and Grease, will star as the director Zach in the production, as he goes about casting a Broadway show.

Also in A Chorus Line will be Leigh Zimmerman, who has appeared in Chicago and The Producers, and Scarlett Strallen, who is currently in Singin' in the Rain in London.

The original production won nine Tony Awards and the Pulitzer prize for drama when it opened on Broadway in 1975.

PA