Theatre audiences have proved there's life in the old Cats yet, after Andrew Lloyd Webber's musical beat almost a decade of box office records at Oxford's New Theatre.

A scene from Cats

Almost 40,000 tickets were sold for Cats during its three-week run between December and January, making it the city's most popular show in almost nine years.

The last show to attract such large audiences was another Lloyd Webber musical, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolour Dreamcoat in December 1995.

The 1,800-seat capacity New Theatre, formerly the Oxford Apollo, reverted back to its original name last year, following a £1m revamp.

The success of Cats represents a promising start for theatre manager Anna Charles, who took over three months ago.

She said: "I don't think anyone was expecting Cats to do quite so well. It was overwhelming really. It just escalated and we had a packed auditorium with standing ovations every night. It was probably because of the family audiences it attracted -- it was perfect for a Christmas show."

For 90 per cent of the 23 performances, the only seats left were restricted view seats.

Cats was the longest running musical in London's West End until the curtain finally came down on its 21st birthday in 2002.

It has taken on a new lease of life on tour in the UK.