AMBLESIDE Players chose a 20th century satire for their autumn production: I Thought I Heard A Rustling written by Alan Plater and directed by Judith Shingler.
Set in the back room of a small town library, the play opens as the committee decides to elect a writer in residence.
Cue the arrival of William (call me Bill) Robson, an unreformed Geordie with a witty turn of phrase.
It soon becomes apparent he is not so much the coal miner turned poet he claims to be, but more a chancer who can turn his hand and charm to get through life with as little effort as possible.
Excellently portrayed by Nigel Hutchinson, sporting an authentic Geordie twang, Bill is a man who can see through small town politics and what he calls the "bullshit" of bureaucracy.
Also charmed by Bill is Ellen Scott, the earnest but literary librarian, whose uneventful life seems about to be overturned by his Geordie charisma until he breaks her self-imposed rule that "the job of every writer is to tell the truth." Bill's stories become wilder and even further from the real truth about himself until Ellen, played with a nice balance of dowdiness and high ideals by Stephanie Bennett, turns against him and he is forced to admit his lies.
Acts rolled along very happily as Alan Plater's words shot broadsides at politics, unions, ballots, committees and the role of a writer in society.
With excellent backstage support, the Players once again played to audiences appreciative of seeing live theatre in Ambleside.
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