Derry actress hopes for funky reviews for film

Derry-born beauty Roma Downey, famous for the popular and long-running TV drama Touched by an Angel, in which she played an angel doing good works around America, is keeping her fingers crossed that her feature film career takes off with the release of Funky Monkey.

Warner Brothers have released the film on a trial basis in two cinemas in Arizona and Texas to "test audience reaction" prior to releasing it nationwide.

Co-starring Matthew Modine, the film is about, believe it or not, the "best super-Ninja secret agent football star monkey hero around".

Downey plays the over-protective mum of a boy who finds a gifted monkey escapee from a laboratory and tries to hide it.