MORE than 100 people queued to be the first to get their hands on tickets for Disney's The Lion King at Bristol Hippodrome.

The box office opened at 8.30am yesterday morning, but some fans were there from 6am to get their hands on the hottest tickets in town.

Staff from the Hippodrome handed out coffees and doughnuts as people waited to buy tickets for the show, which will open in Bristol on September 6.

Christine Lonsdale was first in line. The 25-year-old from St Philips had been there since 6.10am and was buying tickets for her as well as her mother and sister.

"I wanted to get good seats and make sure I had time to buy them and then get to work on time," she said.

"I can't wait to see the show, I'm really excited about it."

David Biggin, 76, of Durdham Park, left his wife at home warm in bed while he queued out in the cold from 6.15am.

"We saw it in London," he said. "But there is a bigger stage here and I want to see how they do it. I'm after gangway seats to see all the people coming down the gangways."

Zoe Bell, 23, was queuing from 6.45am on behalf of her sister Vikkie.

"My sister's at work so I said I would come down for her," said Zoe, who lives in Knowle.

"Tickets don't go online until 10am so it's definitely worth queuing. I came back after seeing it in London raving about it, and I told her she had to go and see it."

Bristol Hippodrome's general manager Christiaan de Villiers said: "We are absolutely overwhelmed by the response.

"We were expecting queues but nothing quite like this. I think it underlines just how big this event is going to be for the Hippodrome and for the city."

Walt Disney Theatrical Productions is launching its touring production at the Hippodrome opening on September 6, where it will play a limited 11-week session until November 17.

The multi award-winning musical will visit 10 cities in the UK and Ireland over two and a half years, with further dates to be announced.

The show has been seen by more than 65 million people worldwide since its Broadway premiere in 1997.

For more information visit www.bristolhippodrome.org.uk.

To see a gallery of pictures from the launch of The Lion King at the Arnolfini in Bristol click here