A VERY famous face turned up to help the Octagon theatre celebrate its 50th birthday.

An open day was held at the town centre venue today before a private party for staff past and present, guests and dignitaries in the evening.

Among the faces who came to look back on the past 50 years at the Octagon tonight was actor Sir Ian McKellen.

The 78-year-old spent his boyhood years living in Bolton and attended Bolton School.

He posed for pictures with delighted guests at the event as people swapped their memories of the theatre over the years.

Bolton Council deputy leader, Cllr Linda Thomas, posted a picture on social media with other councillors and the Lord of the Rings star.

In 1999 the Octagon faced a battle to stay open when it was forced to deal with a huge budget deficit.

Sir Ian backed the campaign to keep the theatre open and said its closure would have been a 'great loss' to theatre-goers in the North West.

While the Octagon is celebrating its first 50 years it is also looking to the future and recently announced a scheme for people to buy a brick or sponsor a seat at the theatre to help with a huge transformation project.