[Beastie]

A NEW series about party-loving dwarves, including one who performs as a drag queen, is set to be as huge as My Big Fat Gypsy Wedding.

The rising stars of Channel 4's Seven Dwarves are filmed after moving into a house filled with Big Brother-style cameras.

The actors lived together as they prepared for a Snow White panto in Woking, Surrey, last Christmas.

And in shades of cult show Geordie Shore, the series follows them as they go boozing, have rows and get FRISKY.

One scene - a 21st birthday party at the house with fellow panto stars - has Pop Idol runner-up Gareth Gates and ex-Brookside actress Claire Sweeney joining in the fun.

Characters include gay Jamie John, 22 - billed as Britain's only drag queen dwarf, Miss DQ.

He was inspired to perform by his dad, who died rehearsing for a panto. Jamie, who lives in a caravan at a Norfolk leisure resort, said: "I'm a diva and proud of it."

Youngest housemate, Josh Bennett, 20, comes from a long line of dwarf actors. Two of his family played Ewoks in Star Wars film Return Of The Jedi.

He said: "It's always bigger women that tend to grab me, swing me round and shove my head in their breasts."

Boss of the house is Max Laird, 31, who goes out with fellow little person Karen Anderson, 43.

Max, who has a twin sister of average height, wants to be taken seriously as an actor and eventually aims to quit panto.

He said: "I feel quite restricted in the characters I get given.

"I'd like a bigger part. I don't just want to be known as the panto dwarf."

He admitted to worries about letting cameras in but said he doesn't regret it. "It's a new experience, as we're going into the unknown," he said. "It's quite daunting." Mum-of-two Karen said: "We're all little - but normal. I want people to see that and the laughs we have."

She hopes the series, to be screened in August, will be as big as Channel 4's gypsy show. But she joked: "I don't want to wear one of those gypsy dresses, though it wouldn't cost much because it would be a lot smaller."

Five of the seven suffer from achondroplasia, one of the most common causes of dwarfism.

But party-lover Craig Garner, 26, has the rare Moore-Federman syndrome, which means he could be unable to walk within ten years. He said: "I don't care what people say about me going out and having a good time. I only have one life and I'm going to live it because ten years down the line I don't want any regrets, as I may be in a wheelchair."

The other stars are Ryan Webb, 26, who was making his panto debut, and Laura Whitfield, 21, who won many medals as a child swimming champ.

The dwarves were filmed for seven weeks by 16 cameras throughout the house - including BEDROOMS. Channel 4 bosses said no nookie was captured but producer Michelle Fobler admitted there were "intimate moments".

Documentaries head Hamish Mykura said: "Big Fat Gypsy Weddings involved a sub-culture people know little about - yet they were fascinated to learn of its amazing richness. There's an element of that about Seven Dwarves."

Executive producer Nick Curwin said: "The programme will break panto stereotypes and show how this group of dwarf actors face the challenges of ordinary life head-on."


Source: http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage...r-big-hit.html