Dr Blake takes a turn as Dr Frank N Furter The cast of the Rocky Horror Show in Brisbane. Craig McLachlan first discovered the soundtrack to The Rocky Horror Show as a nine-year-old boy, rifling through his older brother's vinyl collection. "It was the original Reg Livermore Australian cast recording... you opened the cover and there were snaps from the performance, and I couldn't tell if they were guys or girls," he said. I had no idea what the images meant...but as soon as Science Fiction came on, I fell in love with that record. Craig McLachlan as Frank N Furter, with Rocky Horror Show creator Richard O'Brien. Now 47, McLachlan is strapping on the fish nets and corset for the second time to play Dr Frank N. Furter in the latest touring production of The Rocky Horror Show, opening at the Queensland Performing Arts Centre on Friday night. McLachlan's original 1992 outing as the cross-dressing mad scientist came after his first wave of success as a regular on Neighbours and Home and Away, and with pop band Check 1-2. Twenty-one years later, he's better known for his musical theatre work, and as crime-solving medico Dr Lucien Blake on ABC TV's The Doctor Blake Mysteries. But he couldn't resist the lure of Frank N. Furter's red lipstick and high heels, and eagerly signed on for the role in John Frost and the Ambassador Theatre Group's joint production to mark 40 years since the show's debut in Australia. "This is just something else, it's in a category all of its own," said McLachlan. Rocky Horror is still out there and still, dare I say it, touching people. He said preview audiences in Brisbane have been phenomenal, with fans dressing up in character, singing along and giving standing ovations. There's a rabid, passionate Rocky following out there... make no mistake, the rest of Australia, you're on notice. The show's writer and original Riff Raff, Richard O'Brien, in Brisbane for opening night of the production, said he loved the clarity imbued by British director Christopher Luscombe. "It's never fussy, never messy, never anything extraneous or gratuitous, it's delightful, and the set's pretty lovely," the 72-year-old said. It gives people a great return on their ticket investment - they get a lot of laughter, a lot of fun, there is philosophy in the show but it doesn't hit you over the head with a stick, it has no pretensions. O'Brien conceived the idea while an out-of-work actor in London in 1973, and it was only ever meant for a three-week run at the Royal Court Theatre. More than 40 years on, O'Brien's advice to young writers is never to think that far ahead. "Don't get clever, write to please and amuse yourself," he said. Do it for yourself, then afterwards you can take advice and comments and you can learn from that. The Rocky Horror Show is playing at the Queensland Performing Arts Centre's Lyric Theatre until February 9. Tickets from QPAC.