TELEVISION hopeful Chris Bottomley certainly had stars in his eyes -- thanks to the Lancashire Evening Telegraph.

The 19-year-old student made it through to the final auditions of the hit television show on which he hopes to appear as Micky Dolenz from the Monkees and appealed to readers to supply him with footage of the 60s star to help him hone his act.

Chris's mum Alison Walsh of the Cooperage, in Oswaldtwistle, said the response to the article was "amazing" and scores of people offered their help.

But the call that took them both by surprise was from the sister of Davy Jones, the Monkees' lead singer. They were given full access to his locker.

The star's sibling, Hazel Wilkinson, who used to live in Church and still lives locally, got in touch and offered invaluable tips and access to whole reams of footage.

Chris, who had his final audition this week at the Granada Studios in Manchester, where Star in Their Eyes is filmed, hopped on the Last Train to Blackburn from Middlesbrough where he is studying graphic design, and met up with Hazel.

And he thought he was a Daydream Believer as Chris entered an Aladdin's cave of Monkee memorabilia.

Alison said: "She had read the article in the Telegraph and got in touch with us. We couldn't believe it. Chris was so made up, he kept saying 'I can't believe I'm sat on the same couch that Davy Jones has slept on'. The response to the article was amazing."