Actor Ricky Tomlinson has signed an exclusive deal with OK! magazine to publish his wedding photos, the magazine has confirmed.

An OK! spokeswoman said the star of The Royle Family had agreed to a contract, but refused to discuss details of his fee.

Tomlinson is due to marry his long-term partner Rita Cuminski in his hometown of Liverpool on Saturday.

When contacted by BBC News Online, he declined to discuss the magazine deal, details of which were reported in The Sun newspaper.

Tomlinson refused to go into details of the deal

Speaking from Liverpool, he refused to go into any details of the agreement.

But he added: "We are going to have a fabulous time."

The wedding service is due to take place at the Harbourside Club by the city's marina.

According to The Sun, Tomlinson - described as "a former left-wing firebrand" - had "snubbed his working class roots" to sign a deal with the glossy celebrity magazine.

Desmond's Northern and Shell company owns OK!

The OK! spokeswoman described The Sun report as "mean" and said rival media were motivated by jealousy when they could not obtain pictures.

OK! is owned by Richard Desmond, publisher of the Express Newspapers titles and adult magazines, including Nude Readers' Wives and Asian Babes.

Recently he launched the Daily Star Sunday, Britain's first new national tabloid for 16 years.

Tomlinson, who became famous after appearing in Channel 4 soap Brookside, is a former union activist once spied on by MI5.

He was jailed in 1972 for his part in a builders' strike, but said he was amazed to only find out recently he had been branded a "political thug" by the secret service.