Shaznay shooting first movie

Ex-All Saint Shaznay Lewis is set to demonstrate her football skills

Former member of All Saints Shaznay Lewis is following in the footsteps of her fellow band members by appearing in a film.

Lewis is playing the captain of an amateur football club in the film Bend It Like Beckham.

No camera trickery will be required as Lewis has a strong footballing pedigree, having played for Arsenal Ladies.

The film is about the world of women's football, and in particular about two young women hoping to reach the top, played by Parminder Nagra and Keira Knightley.

Live and Kicking

Lewis is surrounded by a respectable cast, including Juliette Stevenson, Goodness Gracious Me's Kulvinder Ghir, Gormenghast's Jonathan Rhys Meyers and Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels's Frank Harper.

Juliet Stevenson: starring role

Even Trey Farley, formerly of BBC's Live and Kicking, gets in on the act, as a young lad playing football in a park.

The film, currently shooting in Shepperton Studios, is directed by Gurinder Chadha, who directed Bhaji on the Beach.

Chadha said: "The skill level for women footballers is so high that our lead actresses Parminder and Keira have had to undertake a gruelling training programme."

"With all the worries about injuries I'm beginning to know what a Premiership manager goes through."

Factions

Lewis' latest career move is just another indicator of how far she has moved on since the band was put "on ice" after a series of rows.

The band split into two separate factions - Blatt stuck by main songwriter Lewis as the Appleton sisters banded together.

The Appleton sisters have now signed their own deal. They have already recorded two new tracks for their forthcoming album, with the help of Dave Stewart.

Melanie Blatt recently announced that she would be working on new material with partner Stuart Zender, because she needed the money.

As well as her new role, Lewis is believed to be working on new material with Robbie Williams' songwriter Guy Chambers for a forthcoming solo album.

David Beckham: Movie bosses hope he will play a cameo role in the film

Shrewdly, Lewis was the only band member who declined to appear in All Saints' previous movie venture, Honest. It was roundly panned by the critics and prematurely withdrawn from theatres.

The producers of the film are hoping to round out an already impressive cast list by persuading David Beckham himself to make an appearance in the film. He has already given permission for his name to be used in the title.