The news has been roundly condemned by the group Christian Voice, one of the groups which objected to the BBC televising the show in January 2005 - attracting 2.5million viewers and 63,000 complaints.

Jerry Springer - The Opera is to go on a 22-week tour of the UK after 21 regional theatres, including the Bradford Alhambra, struck a deal to save it from collapse. The original UK run of the show - which starred David Soul as quiz show host Springer - came to an end when just under a third of the theatres planning to play host to the production pulled out after pickets were threatened. The Arts Council then refused a request to fund the tour. The theatres involved in the revived tour - including the Alhambra - have agreed to pool marketing, and it will now open in Plymouth in January 2006 before setting off around the country.

It's absolutely appalling...The blasphemy is gratuitous and indefensible.

Stephen Green, Christian Voice

Speaking on BBC Radio Leeds, Stephen Green the National Director of Christian Voice criticised the decision to stage the musical in Bradford. He said there were any number of reasons why the show was offensive to Christians across the city and the whole country: "You've got the Lord Jesus Christ portrayed as an infantile coprophiliac who minces around and says he's 'a little bit gay'. He's told 'F-you' by Satan, he's told by the character of Jerry Springer to grow up and 'put some f'ing clothes on' because he's scantily clad. Almighty God is portrayed as an impotent old fool. Mary the mother of the Lord is told she was raped by an angel. Jerry Springer himself is cast as an alternative saviour. Apart from that, it's not even OK. We've never had a big issue with the swearing. There aren't 8000 expletives in it - we never said there were - but the show is disgusting. It's absolutely appalling. But quite apart from that, the blasphemy is gratuitous and indefensible."

Mr Green said people considering going to see Jerry Springer - The Musical in Bradford must think again about the effect of their actions: "Showing this in Bradford brings the judgement and the wrath of God on us all. For Heaven's sake, people prayed to Almighty God in the name of Jesus Christ during the War. That's just 60 years ago. God brought us through the Second World War...We were humble enough to recognise that Almighty God is powerful...I think they've got to recognise that God is powerful and that Jesus Christ is a saviour."

Sparking controversy: The Alhambra Theatre in Bradford

But staff at the Bradford Alhambra have been quick to defend their decision to stage the show. Also speaking on BBC Radio Leeds, the theatre's Manager Adam Renton described the visit of Jerry Springer - The Musical to Bradford as 'very exciting'. He said it has been on the Alhambra's books for some time: "We were on the initial tour and then it got postponed until the early part of this year...We've never changed our minds, we've always had Jerry Springer programmed in and due to the delay we've freed up a week for 2006. So it wasn't ever on the cards that we were going to change our minds over the artistic merits of this show...I think you have to bear in mind that it's won a huge amount of awards and I think it's wonderful that a group of theatres have got together to make this tour happen."

Mr Renton said the musical's detractors should bear in mind that what people find offensive is entirely subjective: "This is about people's freedom of speech, about people being able to see exactly what they want to see and also it needs to be taken into context: it's one week in a twelve-month period where arguably something in every one of those weeks could be offensive to some part of the community."

This is about people's freedom of speech.

Adam Renton, Bradford Alhambra

However, Stephen Green from Christian Voice called on people to hold prayer vigils outside the theatres involved to try to encourage them to withdraw from the tour, and to write to their local councillors. He said his message to theatregoers in Bradford thinking about visiting the Alhambra to see the show was simple: "People should have the civic responsibility not to go around trampling on people's deeply-held religious beliefs. Nobody would do this to Islam, and it actually so happens that Jesus Christ is recognised as a prophet in Islam so I can't think the Muslims in Bradford and Leeds are going to be very pleased either."

But, if these vigils do take place in Bradford, Alhambra Manager Adam Renton said: "People have a right to protest if they're not happy about something. I hope it will be peaceful and that the production will go ahead."

WHAT DO YOU THINK?

Should Jerry Springer - The Musical be staged in Bradford? E-mail us with your views here: [email protected]

THESE ARE ALL THE COMMENTS WHICH HAVE BEEN SENT IN SO FAR:

This is an age in which people are being attacked and killed both for professing religion and for not professing it. In that context I find it very heartening a play like this can still be staged here. It gives me some hope that - in spite of the climate of fear being whipped up by Dark Age Thinkers ranging from Christian Voice through Tony Blair to Al Qaeda - this country can still permit such beacons for tolerance, courage and humour to shine. MALCOLM, LONDON Just imagine if the islamic equivalent to this play was proposed for Bradford. There would no saying 'if you don't like it don't go' in that case! The people who are proposing this would not dare to put on the islamic equivalent. How can they justify applying different standards to other religions? BRIAN Typical of the BBC to show only one comment from the "Public" on the website against a story about the Springer filth as representative of "public" opinion. A pro-filth and pro-blasphemy comment. Typical BBC filth! Typical of the BBC's gutter-level broadcasting standards. Typical of the level at which the BBC operates. Typical of the self-justifying morality of sickness. MIKE, BLACKPOOL There is a simple answer - if you don't want to see it - don't go!! Surely your God would be strong enough to take a bit of ribbing, heaven (!) knows there's worse been done, or does God object to the play? If so, how do you know? The fact remains - if you don't want to see it, don't go, and let those who want to see it see it! PETER, WEST YORKSHIRE