Bell, star of Forgetting Sarah Marshall, will play a rival of Christina Aguilera’s character at the cabaret club, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

Aguilera plays a small-town girl who moves to Los Angeles and, thanks to her enormous singing talent, finds work at a burlesque club run by Cher.

Thanet district council, which is spending £30,000 on the event, defended the racy nature of the show, which takes place in Margate’s historic Theatre Royal next month, saying it was “no worse than page three”.

In the UK  a proposed Policing and Crime Bill could see burlesque categorised as sexual entertainment. Many burlesque clubs are already coming under pressure to apply for sexual entertainment licenses.

A clan of scantily-clad saucepots are planning a march on London’s Camden Town Hall at the end of the monthin protest ta the new ruling. Nipple tassles will be twirled in protest against the Council’s decision in April to require any venue offering a burlesque show to apply for the Sexual Encouter Entertainment Licence, which is normally the purview of peeler bars and lapdance clubs. The peaceful protest is being organised by the Burlesque Women’s Institute, who say that Camden are effectively trying to ban a practice they don’t even understand, though their description of burlesque as “theatrical satire” might be stretching credibility a little. The Council claim they are only following national guidelines. The protest takes place on 30th July.

So what do you think ? Is burlesque art or just stripping?

The story? Small-town gal moves to the big city of Los Angeles and finds work at a burlesque club. Meaning Christina will get to sing and dance in the flick too. Linked to the project are writer-director Steven Antin and producer Donald De Line.

Miss Polly Rae on burlesque style

Hair

“There’s an art to doing retro styles. To create classic 1940s victory rolls (below left), first put your hair in pin curls and leave to set. Backcomb to make the hair more malleable, then use a bristle brush to smooth it out. Twist the hair around the fingers, curling inwards, back towards the head. Pin with kirby grips, then spray with Elnett.

My hair is quite limp, so I have clip-in extensions that I dye to match my natural colour.

Make-up

I go for the typical 1940s look: pale, flawless skin, strong eyebrows, eye shadow in the creases of my eyes, thick black liner, layer upon layer of mascara, bright red lipstick and the token beauty spot.

It’s always got to be red lipstick. I’ve just found a new one, Mac’s Lasting Lust, a true red. This is the only one that doesn’t come off.

You’re not complete without strong eyebrows. Pencil them in with Mac eyebrow pencil in Strut.

I use Stargazer, the classic stage lashes. I had to hunt them down, but now they are everywhere.

To add sparkle, I apply an iridescent Mac shimmer powder on my body, and touch it up during intervals.

Miss Polly Rae is at Leicester Square Theatre, WC2, every Friday