When she lost her leg in a car accident at the age of 20, it could have been the end of the world for Debbie Carroll.

But she had other ideas.

Determined not to let it ruin her life, she went on to pack more into the next two decades than most people manage in a lifetime.

As well as travelling the globe, and going ski-ing, cycling, sailing, water-ski-ing and horseriding, Debbie is a successful businesswoman, running a cleaning company employing 850 people across the north of England.

And this month she takes on the lead role in Bradford Catholic Players' production of Hello Dolly! at the Alhambra. Debbie has had a new prosthetic leg specially fitted so she can dance in high heels in the show.

"It's a demanding role with a lot of dancing," said Debbie, of Baildon. "The heel height of the leg has to be right for my dancing shoes so I've had a new one made. When I'm dancing the leg must be firmly on; it locks into place with a screw and there's an invisible button on the leg which I press to take it out of the socket. The button looks like those you press on dolls' heads to make the hair grow.

"I have my legs made at Dorset Orthopaedic, where Heather Mills gets hers."

Debbie is working with a personal trainer to strengthen her leg muscles. "You need good stamina to be in a six-day show. The Players have put their faith in me, I don't want to let them down."

Debbie, 48, lost her leg after breaking both femurs in a car accident.

"I had it amputated from the knee down but I was determined not to let it stop me from doing anything," she said.

"The day after I had my leg off I was standing up on crutches - the doctors couldn't believe it!

"I was very young to have that happen but I told myself it could have been worse - I could have been paralysed. Once my prosthetic limb was fitted I never looked back. Life is about goals and ambitions, that's what I kept setting myself."

Debbie, who runs the Carroll Cleaning Company with her brothers Simon and Nicholas and sister Anne-Marie, grew up with Bradford Catholic Players.

She has been in several shows, as well as taking on roles of stage manager, wardrobe mistress and committee member. Her parents were members and now she and her siblings are. Hello Dolly! is a family affair for the Carrolls.

"Simon and his wife Susan and their children Katie and Eliza are in it," said Debbie. "Simon's son Christian works backstage. It's a close-knit society, we're all like one big family."

Debbie is thrilled to be playing the role that inspired her as a girl. "Every since I saw the film Hello Dolly! I wanted to play Dolly Levi," she said. "I loved Barbra Streisand's performance, she's so gutsy and inspirational."

Not unlike Debbie herself!