THE craziest of costumes, mile-high platforms and inch-deep make up – Priscilla Queen of the Desert has arrived in Bristol and strewth, what fun it is.

Based on the 1994 film starring Guy Pearce, the musical boasts a jaw-dropping 500 costume changes including some of the most ridiculous ever to grace a stage, a full-size pink rotating bus, a sprinkling of bare bottoms and plenty of giggles.

But this story of three drifting drag Queens crossing the Australian desert in search of affirmation of their lifestyles is also littered with poignancy and touching moments as Tick (Duncan James), Bernadette (Simon Green) and Felicia (Adam Bailey) struggle to be accepted outside of suburban Sydney.

Duncan James, one quarter of boyband Blue, may surprise some with his acting skills but the singer has actually been in theatre for many years. He plays Tick, a character with whom he admits he has much in common, with the tenderness and vulnerability you would expect of a gay drag Queen hiding the fact he has a wife and son.

His final scene with son Benji (Gabriel Todesco-Bond), in which he finally realises he is loved, wigs, fake eyelashes and all, left some in Tuesday’s audience in tears and Duncan’s soulful tone in Always On My Mind was just gorgeous.

Simon Green was flawless as over-the-hill transsexual Bernadette, the class act of the trio who acts as agony aunt to Tick and Felicia having been there and done all that before. He personified the absolutely fabulous Bernadette so impressively it was quite a shock to see his un-wigged self during the curtain call.

Adam Bailey’s Felicia was wonderfully over-the-top, high-pithed and slutty but we loved him for it. His bondage-inspired entrance to Venus was certainly hair-raising but we got to see his softer side after being beaten up in a back of beyond bar where the locals don’t take kindly to men in dresses.

The heartwarming, laugh out loud show is packed with Hen party hits including Go West, Girls Just Wanna Have Fun, I Will Survive and Hot Stuff. Add in a gratuitous amount of flesh, some wayward ping pong balls, flying singers and an ensemble who wear everything from Wild West outfits to dragons and Priscilla is one of kind.

Funny, touching, a little bit naughty and as camp as you can imagine, it is not to be missed.

Priscilla Queen of the Desert, The Musical is on at the Bristol Hippodrome until June 11.