TV favourite David McAlister is not only performing in one of his favourite stage shows but also at his favourite regional theatre next week. David, best know for playing Hollyoaks' drunken abuser Dennis Richardson, will be playing Daddy Warbucks in Annie at Nottingham's Theatre Royal – and couldn't be happier.

"It's the best theatre in the country, the most beautiful place," he says.

"It has an auditorium steeped in history and beautifully decorated – but backstage you have modern dressing rooms, so the actors are happy.

"I have played there many times in the past and I can definitely say it's my favourite regional theatre in the UK."

The musical Annie, about an orphan girl whose sunny approach to life transforms all around her, is also a delight for David.

"Annie is one of the perennial shows that never fails to find an audience," he says.

"We have people who came to see the shows as children who are now bringing their children, it's that kind of show. In a recession, when people want to part with their money they want to know they are going to see a good production and have a good evening out. They may shed a tear or two but they will go away thinking the world is a better place.

"Annie gives you a bit of everything. It tugs at your heartstrings, it makes you laugh, it has great songs."

He adds: "I know from signing autograph books at the stage door that a dad will be hovering around at the back of the kids and will say 'I didn't want to come but I had a fantastic time'.

"You see, Annie sounds mawkish and very simple but it's beautifully constructed and very well-written."

Starring with David in the show is Hi De Hi star, Nottingham-born actress Su Pollard.

"Su and I have the same ideas," says David.

"We don't like things to be done sloppily. When you are touring for many months things can go off the boil. The younger members of a company might think it doesn't really matter if it's only a Wednesday matinee in Hull. But those people out there are paying exactly the same money and we have to deliver. Su and I think that way. That's why every member of the company has a physical and vocal warm-up before every performance. We don't want anyone leaving the theatre thinking the show looks tired."

Daddy Warbucks is proving a great character to play for David.

"He starts off as a miserable old grouch but over the course of the show Annie humanises his heart," he says.

"Annie's had this horrendous time in the orphanage but she never feels sorry for herself. And it's a great lesson to us all that if you can keep a sunny outlook, life treats you much more easily."

Actors are generally warned against playing with children but David is enjoying working with a crop of talented kids – even if feeling a bit upstaged,

"We have four Annies touring with us who are very different but terrifyingly talented. So many little girls want to play Annie and it's part of our magic act to make it look easy. But she has to be able to sing big time. When you are taking a girl of 10 and 12 and asking her to do the different vocal styles needed, and to be funny, and to act and dance as well, it's a tall order."

Annie is a far cry from David's TV work which includes EastEnders, Mike Bassett TV, Brideshead Revisited and that stint as Dennis Richardson – Hollyoaks' resident alcoholic who abused his wife and molested his daughter.

"In our business you get known for doing something. But I have always adored the variety of the work I have done," says David.

"I love television, playing baddies, all sorts of characters and I love doing Annie, which is so rewarding and gives you immediate feedback from the audience.

"Maybe I should have concentrated on musical theatre or being the star of a soap opera. I adored playing a baddie in Hollyoaks for two years. But if someone had offered me X amount of money but said 'that's all you are going to do until you drop dead' I would have had to have stepped back."

Annie runs at the Theatre Royal from September 14 to 19. Tickets £11- £26. Call 0115 989 5555.