Villagers have lost hundreds of thousands of pounds in savings after a musical organised by their church and set for star-studded arena tour collapsed.

Members of the congregation of the International Church said that they were told that by donating they were "giving to God" but some now face losing their homes after the Christian musical's arena tour was cancelled.

Heaven on Earth, based on the story of Adam and Eve, grew from the "dream" of a local church into a glitzy production starring Kerry Ellis and Hugh Maynard and featuring tenor Russell Watson as the voice of God.

But just three weeks before the start of a six-month nationwide tour which included shows at Manchester and Wembley arenas the show went bust with debts of £2.6million.

It is believed to be one of the largest ever debts in relation to a collapsed theatre production.

Among those who have lost out are around 30 people in the Nottinghamshire village of Mansfield Woodhouse, who are owed roughly £500,000 between them.

Some are said to have remortgaged their homes to help the independent church fund the production.

Yessika Oakley, 34, told the BBC that her family donated thousands towards the project as the church were asking for large sums of money to fund the production.