IN her first theatre role since leaving EastEnders, Claire Wilkie will star in the stage premiere of Ben Elton's novel Inconceivable at the West Yorkshire Playhouse, Leeds, from May 25 to June 16.

Wilkie, who played Beppe di Marco's estranged wife Sandra, will star alongside Duncan Bell and Geraldine Alexander in Elton's tale of infertility: his third play at the Playhouse, following on from the world premiere of Popcorn in 1996 and Blast From The Past in 1998.

Adapted for the stage by director Laurence Boswell, who also directed Popcorn, Inconceivable charts the desperate attempts of an ordinary couple to make a baby. Lucy and Ben, played by Bell and Alexander, have been trying to become parents for five years and are ready to explore every possible avenue to make their dreams come true.

In its frank portrayal of everything from sluggish sperm and lubricating jelly to cystoscopies and IVF cycles, Inconceivable sets out to explode every infertility taboo.

When writing Inconceivable and the film version, Maybe Baby, Elton drew on experiences he and his wife shared as they went through two cycles of IVF treatment. He is now the father of twins.

Tickets: 0113 213 7700.