The 33-year-old, who has appeared as Roxie Hart in West End and Broadway productions of Chicago, will join the cast when the musical opens at the Duke of York’s Theatre in October.

Based on Puccini’s La Boheme, Rent first opened in New York in 1996 and was hailed by the New York Times as a musical that ’dared to take the culture’s temperature and catch its tempo’.

More than 10 years on, the show has been reworked and re-orchestrated by William Baker and Steve Anderson, the creative team behind Kylie Minogue.

The cast includes Siobhan Donaghy as Mimi, Luke Evans as Roger, Oliver Thornton as Mark and Leon Lopez as Collins.

Denise plans boob job? - July 6 2007
Denise Van Outen has revealed that she plans to have a boob job when her chest starts to head south.

The blonde - who recently acted as a judge in reality show Any Dream Will Do? - told Red magazine: "I’m actually really lucky because I’ve got a bust and I’ve never felt the need to have a boob job before.

"But if I have children and they start to sag then yes, I will most probably have something done."

Denise added that she still has some reservations about going under the surgeon’s knife .

She added: "The thought of having massive surgery scares me quite a lot. Also I don’t like it when women all start looking the same."

The 33-year-old, who’s been working in the US, thinks that living in LA puts pressure on people to look good - even Victoria Beckham.

"Will I see her in LA? She’s so thin, I don’t know if I’d know if she’s standing in front of me!" she joked.

"I like Victoria but I just hope she will be OK. If you’re not a very secure person in yourself then LA is the worst place to be. I worry for her a little bit. If you have problems or issues, it’s not the best place to be."


Denise ’Doesn’t Do Diets’ - 1 May 2020
Denise Van Outen has been voted the top bikini body - but her friends insist she has got her fab figure without dieting.

The 31-year-old, who spends time in LA presenting You’re The One That I Want, the US version of Grease Is The Word, trimmed down from a size 12 to a size 8-10 after adopting the healthy lifestyle there.

A friend told Closer: "Denise won’t diet - it’s just not her. She doesn’t believe in it and thinks the whole size zero obsession is ridiculous. But she does believe in healthy living and LA is the perfect place for her to adopt a healthy lifestyle."

Denise, who was recently named best bikini body in a Grazia poll, swapped junk food for fruit smoothies and has taken up yoga and dancing classes to help her shape up, according to the friend.

"She’s not cut out anything 100%. But she’s more active and in the sun she doesn’t crave the heavy meals she did at home."

Denise top in ’bikini body’ poll - 30 April 2020
Denise Van Outen has come top of a poll to find the most desired "bikini body".

The curvy look is back in according to the survey, with the likes of Coleen McLoughlin and Charlotte Church making the list.

Grazia magazine concealed the identities of the celebrities while asking people to name their favourite bodies, and 33-year-old Denise, who is a size 10, came out top - while skinny actresses like Mischa Barton and Keira Knightley did not make the list.

The Essex girl beat Penelope Cruz, also a size 10, into second place, followed by Coleen (size 12), actress Kate Hudson, (size 10), and svelte Lost star Evangeline Lilly.