MILLIONS of TV viewers saw 18-year-old North-East singer Ben Forster plucked out of the chorus in fairy-tale fashion to take a starring role in a major new West End musical.

Ben, from Millfield, Sunderland, was shown being cheered on by a coachload of family and friends, who had travelled to London from the North-East, in the BBC1 documentary The Dream Academy, on Wednesday night.

The programme featured the struggle for stardom of four young performers.

The emotional scenes were a highpoint as Ben came on as understudy in the role of Prince Somal in the musical La Cava at London's Piccadilly Theatre.

He was one of four students featured from Britain's oldest stage school, the Italia Conti Academy of Theatre Arts.

Filming this spring showed him falling apart on stage during an audition for Les Miserables, but regaining his composure to win an ensemble role in La Cava - the musical famous for being the deathbed request of James Bond film producer Cubby Broccoli.

La Cava (The Whore) is a tale of Spanish-North African Middle Ages passion, written by Mr Broccoli's wife Dana.

The musical stars Oliver Tobias and emerging West End star Julie Alanah-Brighten.

Sara Benn, of the Italia Conti's agency, said: "We are delighted Ben has been given a year's contract until May 2001, but the BBC's information at the end was incorrect that Ben has decided to quit his final year with us.

"Ben is still studying during the day and performing at night."