THOUSANDS of girls came hoping for stardom but there can only be one Lyra.

Auditions were held on Tuesday for the lead role of Lyra Belacqua in The Golden Compass, the film adaptation of Northern Lights, the best-selling novel by Oxford author Philip Pullman.

The auditions at the Examination Schools building in High Street, Oxford, were due to start at 10am, but with queues stretching the length of Merton Street, the casting calls started shortly after 8.30am. Some girls arrived as early as 5am.

Previous casting sessions for the movie in Cambridge and Kendal have attracted no more than 1,500 hopefuls.

But Oxford's central location, coupled with the fact that it is home of Mr Pullman, made Tuesday's auditions extremely popular, despite the rain.

Alexandra Ruane, a spokesman for New Line Cinema, the studio behind the Oscar-winning The Lord of the Rings trilogy, said casting directors were delighted by the large number of girls auditioning.

She said: "The queues were incredible and 3,000 girls had arrived by 10.30am.

"Girls coming to audition don't need any acting experience because the film company wants whoever is chosen to be a bit unworldly and embody the spirit of Lyra.

"Some of the filming could take place in Oxford when filming starts in the autumn but everything is still at an early stage."

Ms Ruane said casting directors would choose the girl they wanted to play Lyra by the summer. Some girls would be called back for a second round of auditions before the final selection was made, Ms Ruane added.

Mr Pullman is supporting the film, to be directed by Anand Tucker, but has promised not to interfere with the casting process.

Chloe Swanson, 12, from Thame, was near the front of the queue in Merton Street.

She said: "I'm a member of the Thame Youth Theatre group, so I thought I would give it a try. I thought Lyra would be an interesting character to play she goes on a great journey."

Her mother Jill said: "Coming for these auditions is an experience in itself. We don't expect this to go anywhere I think Chloe might be too tall."

Olivia Frazer-Smith, 11, of North Oxford, said: "It was a bit cold waiting, but I still want to be an actress, so I would come to an audition like this again."