Cooking With Elvis, at the Octagon Theatre, Bolton, until October 18

A PARAPLEGIC Elvis impersonator, an overweight schoolgirl with a passion for cooking and an anorexic mother with an addiction to booze and young men.

You wouldn't expect a storyline like that to have you rolling in the aisles.

But never underestimate the power of someone like Lee Hall to leave you wondering whether to laugh or cry.

Better known for being the brains behind the smash-hit Oscar-winning Billy Elliott, Hall returns you to his North East roots for 'Cooking With Elvis'.

The Elvis in question is 'Dad', badly injured in a road smash two years previously, his frustrated wife and her dim wit live-in lover, and the confused daughter - who admits to having a distinct dislike for Elvis records.

What follows is a tragi-comedy, interrupted with energetic bursts of the King's greatest hits, which tells the tale of a disjointed family obsessed with sex and sponge cakes - and their poor pet tortoise Stanley.

And when 14 year-old budding chef Jill starts eyeing up her mum's lover, you know she is determined to give a whole new meaning to dish of the day!