BBC names 12 Oliver TV hopefuls

Three of the 12 boys will go on to play Oliver on stage on different nights

The names of the 12 boys who hope to win the part of Oliver in a West End musical have been released by the BBC.

Nine are from England, while two live in Wales and the other is from Northern Ireland. All are aged from 10 to 13.

They will take part in I'd Do Anything on BBC One from next Saturday, and eventually three of them will be selected for the lead role.

Sir Andrew Lloyd Webber and Sir Cameron Mackintosh are among the judges, and the role of Nancy will also be filled.

A dozen young women, whose ages range from 17 to 28, are competing to be that character.

The boys include Bon Jovi fan Alexander, who is 11 and lives in London.

Ten-year-old Arthur, from Bristol, wants to own a theatre when he is an adult, while Chester, aged 12 and from Middlesex, hopes to become a professional actor.

Football fan Gareth is a 12-year-old from Londonderry, while 11-year-old Gwion, whose home is in Carmarthenshire, wants to be a musical director.

Ambitions

Also on the list are Harry, a rugby fan aged 12 from Oxfordshire, and Jonny, a 13-year-old from Warwickshire whose ambition is to be a marine biologist.

Thirteen-year-old Chelsea supporter Jordan is the second resident of Wales among the dozen, while Joseph, who is 10 and lives in Berkshire, is a keen rugby player.

Another contestant is 13-year-old Kwayedza from Kent, who hopes to be a successful singer-songwriter.

And completing the list are Shrek fan Laurence, who is 11 and lives in Cheshire, and 10-year-old Sam from Hampshire, who loves the Billy Elliot film and stage show.

Oliver! first reached the London stage in 1960 and became a musical movie in 1968, starring Oliver Reed as Bill Sikes. It went on to win five Oscars.

Previous television talent shows have seen Lord Lloyd Webber find a new Maria - Connie Fisher - for a production of The Sound of Music and an actor - Lee Mead - to play the title role in a new production of the Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat musical.