Singer Gareth Gates, who rose to fame in the first series of Pop Idol, is set to star in Footloose: The Musical in Kent.

Bosses at the Orchard Theatre in Dartford have announced that the pop star, who has sold more than 5m records worldwide, will take the part of Willard in the stage version of the 1984 screen sensation Footloose which starred Kevin Bacon.

Footloose: The Musical will burst onto the stage at Dartford next year as part of a major new UK tour.

Gareth's version of Unchained Melody sold more than 1m copies in the UK and was the thid bestselling single of the decade.

More recently he was in Dancing on Ice in 2014, has been on stage in Les Miserables and Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat and was in ITV's The Big Reunion.

The show will feature classic 80s hits Holding Out for a Hero and Let's Hear it for the Boy and of course the unforgettable title track, Footloose.

When the film was released in 1984, it became the highest grossing February release in US film history. The soundtrack album also ended the year-long reign of Michael Jackson’s Thriller at No.1 and the film was nominated for a Golden Globe.

Footloose: The Musical first opened on Broadway in 1998 where it ran for 709 performances, with a London production following in 2006.

The show has music by Tom Snow and lyrics by Dean Pitchford and has been adapted for the stage by Dean Pitchford and Walter Bobbie. It is based on the original screenplay by Dean Pitchford and is directed and choreographed by Racky Plews.

The premiere of the show will come to Kent on Monday, February 8 next year and run until Saturday, February 13.

To book visit orchardtheatre.co.uk or call 01322 220000.