NIAMH BRACED FOR BASHING OF OPERA SEQUEL

Niamh Perry plays Fleck in the hotly anticipated sequel to The Phantom Of The Opera, which debuted at London’s Adelphi ­Theatre on Tuesday.

But the 19-year-old, who came fifth in the 2008 Lord Lloyd-Webber judged BBC reality TV show I’d Do Anything, was prepared for the musical to be slated.

“Because of the type of show this is, people are going to ‘diss’ (disrespect) it whether they like it or not because it’s a sequel – that’s never been done before,” she says.

But Niamh insists that she will not be put off by negative reviews.

“I’m not expecting a bad reaction. I’m sure it will be a really positive reaction. But it wouldn’t bother me if there was any negativity because at the end of the day I know that we’re all in a great show.

“People love to hate things, that’s what we’ve all realised but no one cares because we know we are working on a ­masterpiece.”

The Irish actress also has nothing but praise for the big boss.

“Andrew is so supportive,” she gushes. “Last week he gave me a signed copy of the soundtrack – he left it on my dressing table with a lovely letter saying: ‘To Niamh, with much love from Andrew.’ That’s the kind of thing he does. He’s thoughtful like that.”

She adds: “I’d say he is nervous but then anybody would be if they were in that position. This is a huge deal for him. He’s a legend and no one has ever done a sequel before so he’s got a lot riding on this.”