Liam Neeson will sing his own songs in a star-studded new £9m movie about Irish showbands — which may co-star sultry beauty Eva Mendes.

And that is straight from the Horslips' mouth — from the Tyrone musician and writer who penned the screenplay for "The Virgin of Las Vegas".

Ex-Horslips musician Barry Devlin, in town to promote a December concert by his reformed folk-rock band, told Sunday Life: "Liam is a good singer. He'll be doing his own vocals."

The Ballymena-born actor has been lined up to play the part of an ageing Irish showband singer who is working the nightclubs in Las Vegas.

U2 frontman Bono is producing the movie and Brendan Gleeson is expected to make his directorial debut.

Neeson's repertoire will include classic showband songs like "The Hucklebuck" and "I Ran All the Way Home" which were huge hits in the Sixties for the Royal Showband, whose lead singer Brendan Bowyer has, of course, been a regular on the Vegas club circuit.

"However Liam's character is not based on Brendan Bowyer," said Barry Devlin, who's from Ardboe on the shores of Lough Neagh.

"Everyone who knows Brendan knows he is a total gentleman. The character that Liam is playing is anything but a nice guy. In fact he's a dreadful man."

The film-makers are hoping either of the sultry Hollywood stars Eva Mendes or Penelope Cruz will play the female lead in the movie, which will be shot on location in Vegas, in Alberqueque in New Mexico and possibly Spain, starting in April or May next year.

Barry Devlin has based the story on his own experiences playing in bands all over Ireland.

Neeson is currently working on a movie version on the Eighties TV hit The A-Team, playing Hannibal, the wily team leader who was played by George Peppard in the telly series.

Producers are also in talks with a number of Irish actors who will play the members of the seven-piece showband who back Neeson. They include Colin Farrell, Killian Murphy and Gabriel Byrne.

Barry Devlin has also written another film called "A Kiss for Jed Wood" which stars Coleraine actress Jayne Wisener and was shot in New York. It's due to be released within the next few months.

n More details about the Horslips reunion will be included in Ivan’s Little at Large column next week