AN uplifting musical telling the remarkable true story of a group of women who created a nude calendar for charity is coming to the stage in Barrow.

Barrow Operatic and Dramatic Society (BODS) is putting on a production of Gary Barlow and Tim Firth’s award-winning musical comedy Calendar Girls: The Musical.

Calendar Girls follows the lives of six members of a Yorkshire branch of the Women's Institute and is based on the true story of the death of Angela Baker's husband John Richard Baker, who died from non-Hodgkin's lymphoma at the age of 54 in 1998.

What followed was an inspirational and daring challenge to raise money in memory of John and to support others living through similar ordeals by creating a nude calendar featuring carefully-placed cake and flower arrangements.

Barrow Operatic and Dramatic Society secured the rights to perform Calendar Girls back in 2019, pre-pandemic, and it's been a long journey since then as theatres have slowly returned to full capacity.

Performances of this uplifting and equally heart-wrenching show will take place at the Forum theatre in Barrow from May 17-21.

Tickets are £14 (plus booking fee) and are available from the Forum. An uplifting, hilarious and simply beautiful night awaits audiences.

A spokeswoman for Barrow Operatic and Dramatic Society (BODS) said: “With cancer being an issue close to the hearts of many of our members and the wider Barrow community, BODS will be taking this opportunity to use its performances to raise money for CancerCare, with the proceeds of the raffle and audience bucket collection being donated to the charity.

“Representatives from CancerCare will also be in the theatre foyer on the Tuesday night to raise awareness of their hard work and dedication in supporting families living through the challenging impacts of this disease.

“Barrow Operatic and Dramatic Society are thrilled to finally be welcoming audiences to enjoy this heart-warming performance.

“Tickets are still available from the Forum in Barrow ahead of the opening night in two weeks.

“The dedication and moving performances of this talented cast make this a performance not to be missed.”