AUDIENCES were left wanting more at Chester Catholic High School following a sell-out run of the classic musical Oliver!

After performing in front of 400 invited guests from local primary schools, the cast and band went on to present three successful shows in succession.

Starring in the eponymous role of the young orphan was 12-year-old Finn Doyle with sixth former Beth Staton taking on the role of the caring Nancy.

Other leading roles were taken by Jess Thake (Bet), James Goodwin (Fagin) and Aaron Bladen (the Artful Dodger) with head boy Connor Jones as the menacing Bill Sykes.

The show was put together by the school’s drama team of Karen McCarthy and Dave Hussin with live music from a school band led by head of music Colin Parfitt.

Fr Paul Shaw is a governor at the school as well as parish priest at St Werburgh’s in Chester. After the opening night his message to students was: ‘Congratulations on a superb show! You really did reach the tops, and gave everyone the most marvellous evening's entertainment. Thank you all very much!’

Headteacher John Murray told the final night audience that he felt humble standing in front of so many talented youngsters. He said: “Education isn’t just about putting facts into children’s heads. It is about bringing out the best in young people, and our staff have certainly done that.”