Thank God Meryl Streep was not available

[Irish Times, subs. req'd] A star-studded cast has been lined up for My Boy, a film about the life of the late Irish singer Phil Lynott.

Gary Dourdan, who plays police officer Warrick Brown in the hit US series CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, will play the role of the singer who died tragically of a drug overdose in 1986. An ex-bass player, Dourdan has been studying Lynott's life for the past few months.

The American actor joins a strong cast that includes Oscar- winning actress Holly Hunter, who will play the rock star's mother Philomena Lynott.

Hunter recently spent time in Ireland to perfect her Irish accent and she will return here next year to begin filming.