Show protester fooled by animals

But when The Mayflower, Southampton, received an angry letter lambasting it for the use of real animals in Dr Dolittle, there were grins of delight all round.

There has certainly been no higher testament to the talent behind the musical because, of the 40-odd animals that dominate the stage, not one of them is real.

But the Southampton Area Captive Animals' Protection Society was so incensed by the inclusion of "performing animals" in the musical, it immediately dispatched letters of complaint to the theatre's managers and the stars of the show, including Phillip Schofield.

A representative for the group wrote in her letter: "It is a matter of great regret that your present production uses performing animals. You must know that the whole climate of opinion nationally is against the use of animals as entertainment, and that Southampton City Council, along with many other local authorities, has had a ban on them on public land since 1984. Much of your audience will be uneasy at seeing your present production, too late realising it involves living creatures."

When its mistake was pointed out, the group wrote back to apologise, saying: "I hope your production is very successful, being very creditable after all."

The writer admitted she had not actually seen the show, which includes such fantastic creatures as the Pushmi-Pullyu (a two-headed llama), a talking parrot with the voice of Julie Andrews and giant moths and snails.

The Mayflower's head of marketing, Paul Lewis, said: "I was very surprised to receive the letter because I thought everyone realised the animals in the show were not real. But it was certainly a tribute to their realistic quality.

"It was unfortunate she got hold of the wrong end of the stick. But I'm sure everyone sympathises with her views on captive animals."

Dr Dolittle is at The Mayflower until Saturday.

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