'Grease' judge thought show would flop

Grease Is The Word judge David Ian worried that the West End production of the hit musical would flop at the auditions stage of the programme.

Shocked by the poor calibre of contestants who had turned up to impress the panel, theatre producer David began to wonder whether it had been a wise move to invest in the show.

"I am the only one with money invested in this show and so far we have only seen a handful of okay, rather bland people," he explained after turning away a series of hopefuls.

Among those rejected at the first stage was 37-year-old Vicky, who hoped that the judges would see past her age and allow her to play the role of Sandy. "Nothing can beat Grease, I used to watch it about three or four times a night at one point," she admitted. "I have got talents in dancing and singing and it's something I’ve always wanted to do."

Despite her pleas, David told Vicky that she was just too old to take on the role: "You could never play 17-year-old Sandy in the West End in a million years."

21-year-old tanning assistant Lisa was turned away for a rather different reason, with the judges seeming distracted by her perma tan. "You're very tanned aren't you?" Sinitta remarked. "Almost black in fact. I really like you but I just don't get it."

David Gest added: "You're sweet but not right."

Grease Is The Word starts tonight at 6.05pm on ITV1.