The twice world champion is among the 200-strong field entering the tournament in Mansfield.

The Irishman, now 53, will play local professional Lee Spick in the �40,000 event at the Towers snooker club on 23 October.

Higgins' last match was in August 1997 at the Pavilions in Plymouth and his previous appearance at the B&H Championship - open to players ranked outside the world's top 16 - came in 1995.

The 2002 champion will collect �6,000 and a chance to play in the B&H Masters at Wembley next February.

But Higgins, who has spent the last few years battling cancer, would need to win eight matches in order to book a Wembley return for the first time since 1990.

Spick, a B&H Championship quarter-finalist for the last two years, admits he is not relishing the prospect of facing one of his heroes.

He said: "I'm not looking forward to it at all. We don't know yet whether he's going to turn up, but if he does it won't be a nice atmosphere.

"Alex used to be a great player and is someone I looked up to and respected.

"I would say he was one of my major influences when I watched him on television.

"When he was on top form he could do anything and I would rather have played him then than he is now."

The BBC's snooker commentator Clive Everton insisted Higgins would be outclassed in his first-round match against Spick.

He told Radio Five Live: "I would doubt if he's any good...and he'll be taking on a very good young player.

"He's not a well man and I'm not so sure this is good news.

"There have been a number of sightings of Higgins in the last few years hustling pool for money in pubs and clubs for �10 a time.

"He has been ravaged by two attacks of cancer and he's resumed his old smoking and drinking bouts."