A FATHER-of-two is hoping to become a Bolton version of Andrew Lloyd-Webber after writing a musical for children in his community.

Ian Matthews, of Broad Oak Road, Great Lever, will see a group of talented youngsters perform his latest work at Rose Hill Church this weekend.

The 40-year-old is a data processing manager during the day, but his love of musicals inspired him to have a go at writing a 'Cats' or 'Phantom of the Opera''.

He has already created a number of productions and the latest, 'Fools and Heroes', will be performed at Rose Hill Church tonight and Saturday.

Ian, whose wife Tina directs the show, and sons Chris, 14, and 12-year-old Ben, star in it, said he originally wrote the play for one of his childen's schools, but it was never put on stage.

He added: "I've written a couple of musicals before for various churches and the Salvation Army.

"I like musicals and first got involved in doing it myself when a wrote a few songs for a play, which seemed to go down well. I enjoyed it and decided to write a full musical."

'Fools and Heroes' tells the story of two neighbouring kingdoms who are at war.

A jester, treated as a fool by everyone at the beginning, eventually unites the two countries and is hailed a hero by his original detractors.

This week, the 12-strong choir and cast of 14 have been busy rehearsing in preparation for the performances in front of 120 family and friends.

Ian believes taking part in the musical will be a great experience for the youngsters.

He said: "This is a real community project and I think people watching will really enjoy the show.

"I think it will do the children a lot of good. It will be a notable first for many.

"The majority have never performed or sung in public and some didn't even know they could sing."

Both performances at the Bradford Road church are expected to sell out.