Frankie Bridge earned a thunderous reception as she took to the stage for a gala night performance of 2:22 A Ghost Story on Wednesday.

The singer, 34, took her bow alongside co-star Jaime Winstone to huge applause at The Apollo Theatre.

Frankie, who took over the role from Sophia Bush, will appear in the play alongside Jaime, who stars as Jenny, from August until the end of the run on 17 September. 

She donned a chic mustard suit for the role of Lauren after making her debut in the spooky play on Friday.

And while several stars were in attendance for the glitzy gala night, Frankie’s husband Wayne missed the show, and was instead seen heading to a Liam Gallagher gig in Camden Town.

After the show, both Frankie and Jaime changed into a glamorous looks for the play’s after party.

The Saturdays star donned a sleek black top with a dramatic black satin skirt as she posed for snaps with Jaime and co-stars Ricky Champ and Clifford Samuel.

Jaime also cut a glamorous figure in an eye-catching red bow jumpsuit as she headed to the post-show party.

Among those who attended the gala night was The Great British Bake Off star Candice Brown, who opted for a stylish frilled green dress.

The star was accompanied by her pal, Dancing On Ice professional Matt Evers.

Lisa Snowdon opted for a black satin blouse and flared trousers, accessorising with gold pointed-toe heels.

Frankie Bridge won praise from fans for her West End debut last week.

Following her first appearance, a fan took to Twitter to pen: ‘Saw 2:22 A Ghost Story last night and it was superb! I was gutted that Sophia Bush wasn’t in it because she was ill but Frankie Bridge was an excellent replacement. Highly recommended.’

Others lauded the ‘fantastic’ appearance, in which she plays haunted lead character Jenny’s pal Laura who attends a diner party at her house. 

A dedicated follower took to Instagram to pen: ‘Met Frankie after the show tonight. Frank did a fantastic job for her west end debut! I’ve been supporting since the S Club/The Saturdays days in the early 2000’s…

‘I am so proud of her and can’t wait to see the show some more times. I already have the last day booked for both shows. Thank you for stopping, and signing my programme. Go smash it, Frank!!’

Frankie replaced One Tree Hill actress Sophia in the role, after she was forced to cut short her scheduled stint, following a hospital stay. 

Sophia has been suffering with an illness since becoming unwell in June, and has jetted home to the USA for medical treatment, upon the advice of doctors.  

On joining the cast, Frankie shared the news to her Instagram, posting the promotional photographs as she gushed: ‘I’ve loved 2:22 A Ghost Story since I first saw it, so landing the role of Lauren is a total dream come true.

‘Never one to do things by halves, it’s an honour to be making my West End debut on such a clever, suspense-filled production and I couldn’t be more excited to join the cast who have already made me feel like a part of the family.’

She added in an official statement: ‘Lauren is a joy to play with so many layers and emotions to explore. I can’t wait for you to meet her!’

Last month, producers released a statement that said: ‘Due to illness, Sophia Bush has unfortunately had to withdraw from the production. We are delighted to welcome Frankie Bridge to the 2:22 family.

‘Our talented understudies Gemma Yates and Allie Dart have been covering the role of Lauren on rotation. We are hugely grateful to them for stepping up so brilliantly. They will continue until Frankie begins.’

Sophia added: ‘I am truly gutted that my time in 2:22 A Ghost Story has come to an unexpected and early end. I came down with a virus in June and have not been able to bring my body back to a baseline.

‘After weeks of being intermittently pulled off stage, visiting multiple doctors and spending a night in the Emergency Room, I’ve been advised by expert healthcare specialists that I needed to end my time on stage and be under the care of my doctors at home in the US.

‘I owe a debt of gratitude to my incredible cast mates and to every member of our extraordinary company, who became fast family. It means the world to me that so many fans traveled to London to see the show.

‘If you’re booked for future nights, please still go and support my brilliant costars. They will blow you away! And I know that Frankie Bridge will be astounding as she makes Lauren her own through the rest of this run.

‘There is no greater experience than the stage. I miss it madly. I love it deeply. And I cannot wait for the next one.’

2:22 A Ghost Story follows Jenny who believes her new home is haunted, but her husband Sam does not agree.

They argue with their first dinner guests, old friend Lauren and her new partner Ben. Belief and scepticism clash, so they agree to stay until 2.22am.

Frankie has transitioned from a pop star in S Club Juniors and The Saturdays to become an author and podcaster who joined the ITV’s Loose Women as a panellist in 2020.

She was a finalist in I’m a Celebrity…Get Me Out of Here and also danced her way to the semi-finals on Strictly Come Dancing in 2014.

Have you ever seen a ghost? I haven’t, but my wife, Clare, woke me earlier this week, convinced there were ghosts in our bedroom.

‘I can see them moving around at the end of the bed,’ she told me. ‘They don’t have faces and they don’t look threatening, but they are definitely there.’

At this point she turned the lights on and insisted that we get out of bed and have a look behind the curtains, and then under the bed. Reassured that the ghosts had gone, she went back to bed and swiftly fell asleep.

In fact, I didn’t find this particularly odd because it happens quite frequently. I don’t for a moment believe in ghosts, and nor, when she is fully awake, does Clare.

But what she experienced isn’t a conventional nightmare, nor is it a sign that she’s going crazy. Instead, it’s caused by something called sleep paralysis.

Experiencing sleep paralysis, with or without the ghosts, is surprisingly common. 

According to the American Academy of Sleep Medicine, 20 per cent of us experience something like this on a fairly regular basis. 

And though most people, like Clare, just think, ‘That’s weird’ and then go back to sleep, many find it genuinely terrifying.

So what is going on? Sleep paralysis occurs during rapid eye movement (REM) sleep, which is when we have our most intense dreams and nightmares.

While we are in REM sleep, our limbs become temporarily paralysed to prevent us thrashing around and hurting ourselves or others; you continue to breathe, and your eyes flicker from side to side, but you can’t move.

Most of us are completely unaware that this is happening, because we’re asleep, but sometimes your brain wakes you up while you are still in the grip of REM dreams, and that can be disturbing.

Different cultures have different explanations for these intensely vivid experiences.

A 2015 study in Italy, for example, found that 38 per cent of people who reported experiencing sleep paralysis believed a supernatural being called the Pandafeche — a cat-like creature — was to blame.

According to local folklore, the best way to prevent a Pandafeche attack is to have a pile of sand by the bed to throw in its eyes.

Brazilians, on the other hand, are more likely to blame sleep paralysis on a demon called Pisadeira, a witch-like creature with sharp fingernails that walks on people’s stomachs when they are sleeping on their backs.

That myth, at least, has something to it because you are much more likely to experience sleep paralysis when you sleep on your back. 

You’re also more likely to experience it if you’re a shift worker or suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder (both of which disrupt sleep) — or if you have a family history of sleep paralysis.

None of this applies in Clare’s case. Though it is more likely to happen when she is stressed, and there is some suggestion that sleep paralysis may be stress-related.

As for why people see ghosts, or demons, Professor Baland Jalal, a neuroscientist at Harvard University, has a theory: he suggests that when you wake up and realise that you are paralysed, your brain jumps to the most obvious conclusion — i.e. that there is some supernatural agent involved. 

In a state of heightened alertness your brain also interprets any shadowy shapes you can see as demons or ghost-like creatures.

According to Professor Jalal, who himself suffers from sleep paralysis, the reason that these demons are normally faceless is because creating a mental image of a shadowy creature requires far less brain power than creating something more distinctive.

And when you are still halfway between REM sleep and full wakefulness, your brain is much more concerned with getting you out of harm’s way than paying close attention to what this mysterious shadowy threat really looks like.

So what can you do?

If you are having regular ghostly visitations then avoid eating a big meal or drinking alcohol a couple of hours before going to bed, as these disrupt sleep.

You can also reduce your likelihood of sleeping on your back by sewing a tennis ball into your pyjamas, or by wearing a device round your neck that detects when you are on your back and gives you a little shock to force you to change positions.

If it is more serious, you might want to consider cognitive behavioural therapy — this aims to change behaviour patterns, replacing negative thinking with more positive ideas.

This was the basis of a study led by Professor Jalal, where patients who said they frequently suffered from disturbing sleep paralysis were asked to practise doing three simple things.

First, they were asked to remind themselves, when properly awake, that what they’d experienced is common, benign and temporary — and that these sorts of hallucinations are a typical by-product of dreaming

Second, rather than focus on feelings of fear, they were asked to try to concentrate on positive feelings, such as thinking of a loved one, or offering a short prayer to God.

And finally, they practised muscle relaxation exercises, which can involve relaxing each set of muscles, one after the other, for 15 minutes a day, for two days a week.

Impressively, after eight weeks of doing this, the patients experienced a dramatic reduction in the number and severity of their attacks, as reported in the journal Frontiers in Neurology in 2020.

Professor Jalal says that if bigger studies support these findings, then this sort of treatment could be delivered to patients via a smartphone app.

I look forward to that. In the meantime, I will continue humouring Clare when she jumps out of bed and starts looking for ghosts.

People with type 2 diabetes who exercised in the afternoon had greater reductions in their blood sugar levels than those who exercised in the morning, according to a recent study published in the journal Diabetes Care. 

They also had a greater chance of being able to come off their diabetes medications.

While it’s not clear why there’s a difference, it seems like a simple tweak with a real impact.

If you’re a mouth breather, you might want to do something about it: as I discovered while researching for my latest Just One Thing podcast series, mouth breathing can be bad news for your teeth.

This is because it reduces saliva flow, which is key to clearing harmful bacteria in your mouth. Mouth breathers are more likely to need fillings and have inflamed gums.

Plus, it changes how facial muscles move and the forces they apply to your jaw: if a child mouth-breathes, it can alter the shape of their face.

By contrast, nose breathing comes with health benefits. For instance, the hairs in your nose act as a filter, removing dust, pollen and other particles. 

The nose itself helps warm and moisturise the air, which improves oxygen uptake in your lungs.

And nose breathing triggers the release of nitric oxide gas in your sinuses, which kills bacteria. 

When the nitric oxide reaches your lungs, your blood vessels expand, again boosting oxygen uptake.

Nose breathing can affect how well we lay down memories, too. In a study by the Karolinska Institute in Sweden in 2018, volunteers were asked to inhale 12 scents, then breathe through their noses or their mouths for an hour.

In a later test, the nose breathers were better at remembering the scents (scans show that nose breathing while doing a memory test activates the brain more).

Some people are mouth breathers as a result of sinusitis, adenoids or hay fever, which needs treating. But if it’s just a habit, doing yoga — which trains you to breathe through your nose — may help.

They’re signs of the times.

A British family history expert is documenting the ‘ghost signs’ – vintage advertising signs preserved on buildings – that are hidden in plain sight across the UK.

To date, genealogist Lucy Meyer-Hubner has catalogued more than 460 ghost signs everywhere from Wales to Glasgow on the Instagram page ‘Ghost Signs From Bygone Times’. 

Offering a glimpse through a window of British history, these painted and tiled signs predominantly date from between the Victorian era to the 1940s.

Lucy, who runs the genealogy business Budding Ancestors, tells MailOnline Travel that the account’s Instagram followers – of which there are nearly 39,000 – send her images of signs, and then she researches the companies and brands behind them. 

Some of the most unusual signs unearthed include a masonry sign outside a former butcher’s shop in Clifton, Bristol. The ‘quirky’ sign advertises ‘pickled tongues’, Lucy reveals. 

She notes: ‘I’m also quite fond of the Edwardian draper’s ghost sign for “Fletchers Fearless Clothing” found in Cockermouth, Cumbria, purely for its great name.’

Another standout for Lucy is a ‘fascinating time capsule’ of a ghost sign that was found in Lidget Green, Bradford. The sign is an example of a ‘palimpsest’, which Lucy explains is ‘where a number of different signs have been painted on the same wall over the years’. She says: ‘As the paint wears away in certain areas, various layers are visible at the same time, giving us a potted history of the associated businesses.’

In the case of the Lidget Green sign, the advert for ‘Wally Woods. Tailor. Outfitter’ is the oldest, dating back to the 1920s. Lucy says: ‘We can also see a few different adverts relating to televisions. “Peto Scott” was a brand of TV produced from the 1940s until 1958. We know a company called Barker & Miller sold and repaired televisions and wirelesses at this address from 1953. The sign also shows “C W Walker & Co”, which was another TV reseller in 1950s Bradford.’

Other signs have been discovered in unusual locations, Lucy reveals. She recalls: ‘There was a ghost sign for “Household Linens… Drapery” in Camberley, Surrey, that was [painted] on a 10ft (three-metre) freestanding section of wall on the edge of some wasteland. It was the only remaining piece of the building!’

Lucy – who also has a background in graphic design – uses her resources as a genealogist to unearth the stories behind these signs, from accessing online databases to visiting archives in London, where she’s based. In a few cases, she has managed to tie the businesses behind the signs into a particular family tree, allowing her to send the findings to the relevant descendants. 

A handful of signs have proven to be a real mystery, however. She says: ‘The most tricky are usually the signs that have only been partially revealed and those on roads which have changed name or numbering patterns over the years… for these, research using historical maps is a must.’

One sign that she has yet to track down the history of is a partially exposed sign in Oldham, Greater Manchester. She says: ‘The remaining text reads, “Ask your de… for Morpar & pa…”. Still yet to crack that one!’

Detailing why she’s so passionate about documenting these relics of history, Lucy says: ‘We can find out so much about the past of our UK villages and cities from these often beautiful reminders of a bygone era. 

‘There are many instances of terms, phrases and products that we no longer use such as “beanfeasts” (a works meal out); “phaeton” (an open top four-wheeled horse-drawn carriage); “steam printing works” (commercial steam-driven printing press); and “habit maker” (a maker of women’s riding outfits). “Bile Beans” were a “cure-all” brand of pills targeting everything from indigestion to pimples and “Turog” was a brand of flour used to make brown bread.’

Generally, a local professional sign writer would have painted the original signs, Lucy reveals, adding: ‘However, some of the larger companies, such as Bovril and Hovis, would have had their own in-house team of sign writers just to make sure the signs were consistent.’

Why were these signs covered up in the first place? Lucy explains: ‘Painted ghost signs would have been covered up when that particular business ceased to exist or a product that had been advertised was superseded by a newer, better version. 

‘Some ghost signs were altered to fit the new business or to reflect the new owner of the same business.’

She says: ‘It was quite common for house owners with a prominent gable end, to rent the space out to advertise a product for a little extra income. Over the last century, billboard companies would often take over these prime sites and cover the original adverts with their hoardings. This in turn preserved the original sign to a certain extent.’

Her research doesn’t look set to end any time soon, as Lucy believes there are thousands of yet-to-be-discovered ghost signs around the UK. She says: ‘Many were just painted over with whitewash and as the years go by, the lead-based paint of the original signs start to show through. Also, when a billboard company decides it no longer wants to rent a particular wall space and removes its billboard, there may well be an old sign that had been covered and is once again revealed.’

Unfortunately, these signs won’t last forever. Lucy says: ‘In some cases, it is inevitable that the paint will fade to obscurity. However, many ghost signs are already over 100 years old and look to be able to stay with us for another century.’

A few of the ghost signs that Lucy has featured on the Instagram page have been subsequently ‘obliterated’, she reveals. The genealogist says: ‘When a building is repurposed from commercial to residential and the new owner doesn’t necessarily feel the signs fit, they sadly have the right to remove them… this is one of the reasons I was passionate about creating an online database for people to refer to’. 

That said, Lucy notes that ‘some local councils are beginning to see the historical importance of ghost signs and are placing preservation orders on them or covering the smaller ones with a sheet of perspex’. 

There’s been a nostalgia-tinged reaction to these relics online, Lucy reveals. She says: ‘Most people seem to appreciate them and those who send me ghost signs and mosaic doorsteps are particularly interested to find out the history that I can discover behind them. 

‘They are also a talking point that can evoke feelings of nostalgia, often for an era that most of us aren’t even old enough to remember!’

For more from Lucy, visit Ghost Signs From Bygone Times on Instagram or Facebook, or visit her genealogy website Budding Ancestors.