TOURING versions of successful West End shows tend to be scaled-down versions of their London counterparts, with small sacrifices made here and there in order to bring the show to regional audiences.

Miss Saigon looks like being the exception.

Even Cameron Mackintosh, the producer who originally brought it to the stage 14 years ago, admits he prefers the touring version - quite an accolade from the man responsible for some of the most spectacular theatre experiences of the last 20 years.

Only a handful of UK venues have been able to accommodate the show - the biggest ever tour mounted in the UK.

Everything that wowed audiences in the original run is present and correct, from the 18ft high statue of Ho Chi Minh to the life-size helicopter that swoops in to perform an airlift during one of the show's most dramatic scenes.

The legendary show has knocked out audiences in tours all over the world and now stands as the third most successful musical of all time.

With music by Claude-Michel Schonberg and lyrics by Richard Maltby Jr and Alain Boublil, Miss Saigon tells the story of the torrid love affair of an American GI and a Vietnamese girl in the days leading up to the Fall of Saigon.

Playing the lovers are David Shannon and Ima Castro, a real life couple who met on the Saigon tour last year and will tie the knot in Southampton (the final leg of the two-year UK tour) next month.

Leading the Southampton production is Leo Tavarro Valdez, who has played The Engineer - the nightclub owner who arranges liaisons between American troops and local girls desperate to get out of Saigon - on and off for the last eight years.

Miss Saigon runs at The Mayflower until December, so there's plenty of time to see it.

But make sure you do - because you'll probably never get the chance again.

Tonight until Saturday December 13. Box office: 023 8071 1811.