Stage actress Laura Michelle Kelly was today confirmed as the star of the new Mary Poppins musical.
The £8 million production from Sir Cameron Mackintosh promises to be one of the most lavish shows the West End has seen.
Kelly said she was "absolutely thrilled" to have landed the role.
A West End veteran at just 22, she played Eliza Doolittle in My Fair Lady for the last six months of its run, following in the footsteps of Martine McCutcheon.
She has also appeared in Les Miserables, Mamma Mia, Beauty and the Beast and Whistle Down The Wind, but the Mary Poppins role will thrust her into the big time.
Kelly, from Totton, Hants, said: "I am absolutely thrilled at the opportunity I have been given. This is truly the role of a lifetime."
She is currently appearing in Fiddler on the Roof on Broadway.
Mary Poppins will open at the Hippodrome in Bristol later this year, eight weeks before its West End premiere at the Prince Edward Theatre on December 15.
The opening will coincide with the 40th anniversary of the release of the Disney movie classic starring Julie Andrews and Dick Van Dyke.
It will include many of the original songs from the film and has been written by Julian Fellowes, the Oscar-winning Gosford Park screenwriter.
Sir Cameron said: "When we started discussing the casting of Mary Poppins for the stage, we dreamt of finding an actress who was on the brink of stardom, but not yet associated by the public with a particular role.
"We are thrilled that Laura has won the part and we feel sure she will bring her own unique quality to this extraordinary and much-loved role."
