WHEN the show Puppetry of the Penis burst into the limelight many moons ago - 1997 to be precise - it was seen by many as some sort of naughty gimmick.

You might think the novelty would have since worn off, but it's still going strong, having toured across most of the Western World, being hosted in over 35 countries and performed in six languages.

If you're one of the few who haven't heard about it, it's a stage show where two nearly naked men (they wear shoes) manipulate their nether regions using what they say is the "ancient art of genital origami" providing the audience with an array of shapes and impersonations which will be projected onto a huge video screen.

This particular production - coming to the Palace Theatre - comes straight from Las Vegas, where its been for the past year.

The guy who started the whole thing was Simon Morley, from Australia, who showed his shape making talent to the audience of the Tonight Show with Jay Leno, plus Howard Stern, Elton John, Madonna, the Spice Girls, David Beckham, Bono, Carrie Fisher and Amy Schumer to name a few.

Morely will be taking part in this tour, bringing you classic "installations" such as Eiffel Tower, the Lochness Monster, the Pelican, the iconic Hamburger, and new installations, such as Miley Cyrus, Yoda, and the Kardashians.

The promoters of the show say"we understand the title can be a little scary, but be rest assured we are experts at talking about our show in the cleanest possible way.

It’s just comedy after all. This is a non-sexual show and does contain full frontal male nudity."

Puppetry of the Penis is on at the theatre in London Road, Westcliff, on Saturday April 23 at 8pm.

Tickets are available at southendtheatres.org.uk from £17.