"I'm way too old for it, it's ridiculous!" he laughs as he explains that it was his own concerns about his age – he's actually a very youthful 54 – that initially led him to turn down the part several times.

"I know this is theatre and not the real world but I always thought of Arthur Kipps as, at the most, 23 or 24 so I thought there was no way I could do it now," he admits.

"I could maybe play 30s if the wind's in the right direction!"

Nevertheless, the producers of what was to be the first major revival of the show in several decades insisted that Gary at least meet them to discuss his concerns.

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"I told them my fears and worries – the main one being that I was too old.

"But they said they had Warner Brown, a good strong writer, who was going to work on the script – and he said we could do it if we set the story retrospectively, with the character looking back on his life.

"I think what we have come up with now and where Warner has been so brilliant is that he has taken this traditional musical and suddenly it is very modern and accessible, although it still maintains its traditional values."

One of the reasons the show hasn't been seen professionally for such a long time might be because it is, thanks mainly to the hit movie adaptation, still strongly associated with its original star, Tommy Steele.

"Yes, I still get the Tommy Steele thing," Gary says. "People say they know the film but I have to confess it feels like a completely different musical when I'm in it to what I saw in the film.

"When you go into the rehearsal room you only take your own box of tools in with you.

"I thank Tommy for making the show the success it was but I also curse him in a way because I'm never off stage thanks to him! We've worked it out that I'm in the wings doing nothing for just two minutes and 40 seconds in the whole production!"

Half a Sixpence is the latest in a long line of musicals now stretching back almost 20 years for Gary – a string of shows that includes everything from Me and My Girl and The Pirates of Penzance to The Goodbye Girl.

"This is what I'm doing and I love it, I absolutely adore it," he insists.

"Musicals are a fantastic medium and I love seeing the audience go away happy – I work very hard to try to achieve that and I suppose I always have done."

Even after so long, though, he still finds there are some members of the public who prefer to remember him as a television impressionist and comedian.

"If you're a plumber and you become an electrician they don't keep on calling you a plumber," he points out. "But for many years I was billed as 'impressionist Gary Wilmot'.

"I thought it was quite interesting how that took some time to morph into actor but I can't mind – as long as they're thinking about me I'm happy.

"The thing is that I absolutely love performing. It's like doing the Times crossword every day, keeping on and getting better.

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