Photos: TWOPENCE TO CROSS THE MERSEY UK Tour Opens; Get a First Look!

The first UK national tour of Helen Forrester's Twopence To Cross The Mersey opened in Wirral last week - a place which features heavily in Helen's million-selling books and where the celebrated author spent some of her childhood. Check out all new photos below!

Twopence To Cross The Mersey UK premiere tour 2022 is now running throughout the Autumn until mid-November. The hit stage drama will now visit 14 further venues nationwide and brand new production shots have been released.

The new stage production was premiered at the Floral Pavilion in Wirral where is played for six dates and gained rave reviews. It will continue this week at Rhyl Pavilion Theatre in North Wales from Wednesday 14 September to Saturday 17 September.

The tour also includes dates in Stockport, Crewe, St Helens, Blackpool, Warrington, Darlington, Halifax, Croydon, Coventry, Lichfield, Bolton and Southport - before concluding in Liverpool at the Epstein Theatre.

The new touring production of Twopence To Cross The Mersey is produced by Rob Fennah and Lynn McDermott for Pulse Records Limited in association with Bill Elms and directed by Gareth Tudor Price.

The 9-strong cast play more than 40 characters - they are Mark Moraghan, Daniel Taylor, Parry Glasspool, Jenny Murphy, Lynn Francis, Lynne Fitzgerald, Robert Hudson, Roy Carruthers, and Chloe McDonald.

Five of the cast members - Mark, Parry, Lynn, Roy and Chloe - have appeared in its sister show By The Waters Of Liverpool.

Playwright and producer Rob Fennah explained: "We're overjoyed that we're opened the UK premiere tour of Twopence To Cross The Mersey, it's been well worth the wait. And we have been delighted with the audience and Press reactions to the show so far, we have a wonderful cast to tell Helen's fascinating story.

"Helen has fans worldwide, and this way we can take Helen's story a little closer to them. Helen was inspiring, with so much strength, resilience and determination, a pioneer of her time. Her story is one which needs to be told to young and old alike. It's a very special experience for everyone involved - we're all custodians of her incredibly honest writing that everyone can relate to, especially given today's difficult economic climate."

Millions of people worldwide are familiar with Helen Forrester's life story which is told through her best-selling volumes of autobiography, Twopence To Cross The Mersey, Liverpool Miss, By The Waters Of Liverpool, and Lime Street At Two.

Helen's literary achievements were further celebrated in 2020 when an iconic Blue Plaque was unveiled at the late author's family home in Hoylake on the Wirral, a place which featured heavily in her work.

The popular stage adaptation of Twopence To Cross The Mersey has been updated by writer Rob Fennah, who enjoyed a long friendship with Helen Forrester. Through their meeting of creative minds, Rob adapted Helen's book into a stage musical in 1994 which was premiered at the Liverpool Empire Theatre. Helen travelled from her home in Edmonton, Canada, to see her story brought to life on stage.

Rob later went on to develop Twopence into a straight stage play which premiered in Liverpool in 2015, before touring England's North West in 2016. Helen died in Edmonton in 2011.

This year's nationwide tour of Twopence To Cross The Mersey will be followed by a tour of By The Waters Of Liverpool in Spring 2023, the next instalment in Helen's life story. By The Waters Of Liverpool was due to tour in 2020 but was cut short by the pandemic, so is eagerly awaited by fans of the author.