WHEN fans heard Britain's favourite comedienne was taking her hit TV series on the road, the question on everyone's mind was: could she do it? How was Catherine Tate going to morph into her myriad of characters in real time?

Well, a sell-out crowd in York was the first to witness her live and uncut on Monday night. She forgot her lines twice, but such is the good will towards this comic institution that the audience just laughed along with her.

Tate brought 11 characters to the Barbican stage, many known for their catchphrases as much as their names. Favourites included bored schoolgirl "Am I bovvered?" Lauren and mincing "How very dare you" Mr Fey.

Randy "Oirish" nurse Bernadette opened the show, snorting at her own double entendres as she skipped around the hospital ward flirting with a male visitor (played by Mathew Horne, one of the three talented co-stars).

The biggest cheer came with the arrival of foul-mouthed Nan, whose presence was peppered throughout the night via video clips of BBC Radio One DJ Nick Grimshaw interviewing her "live on air" because she had won tickets to see, yes you've guessed it, The Catherine Tate Show Live. Her response to that couldn't be published in a family newspaper.

Tate appeared in at least half a dozen video clips too, aired while the stage was being reset, giving the audience even more bang for their buck.

A final song, Stand Up For Gingers, had the whole audience on their feet. A standing ovation, well earned.