by Keyan Milanian

kmilanian@thekmgroup.co.uk

A schoolboy who 'lives to dance’ has landed the starring role in a West End play - skipping into the character of Billy Elliot.

Twelve-year-old Josh Baker, from Rochester, has become the 25th boy to play the role in the stage adaptation of the Oscar-nominated film, playing at the Victoria Palace Theatre, in London.

Having started acting aged five, and dancing aged seven, Josh trained at the famous Italia Conti Associate School, joined the Stage Theatre Society (STS) last year and successfully auditioned for the role last summer having beaten hundreds of other hopefuls.

The Maths School pupil said: “I was over the moon when I found out I would be playing the role of Billy and was really excited about my first performance.

“I love being part of such a great musical - the training has been very hard but also great fun, I can’t wait for all my friends from Stage Theatre School to come and see me performing in the West End.”

Josh’s father Matt Baker said: “It has been unbelievable, you can’t really explain what it is like seeing him on the stage.

“It has been life changing for him and we are all very excited about it, although it is always nerve wracking seeing your child on stage.

“The auditions were hard on him too - I’ve never had a job interview that lasted as long as it did - but he really loved every minute of it, this is his dream come true.”

It’s not the first time he has performed for an audience having appeared on programmes and adverts for the BBC, ITV and Channel 4 as well as playing Billy Elliot in the STS’s version in Maidstone last year.

While performing, Josh lives in a secret location in London with the rest of the young cast and travels back to Medway on his days off, when he goes back to school.

His grandmother Delia Evans went to Josh’s first performance.

She said: “It was brilliant, he got a standing ovation, I was proud as anything and all of us were crying.

“He just loves it, when he comes to my house he is dancing, when we are out shopping, on the bus or on the train, it doesn’t matter, he is doing it, he loves it so much.”