THE world stage premiere of A Bunch of Amateurs by Ian Hislop and Nick Newman opens tonight in The Watermill.

Keen to boost his flagging career, fading Hollywood action hero Jefferson Steele arrives in England to play King Lear in Stratford only to find that this is not the birthplace of the Bard but a sleepy Suffolk village and the cast are a bunch of amateurs.

Jefferson’s monstrous ego, vanity and insecurity are tested by the enthusiastic amateur thespians – who are not averse to a spot of ego, vanity and insecurity themselves.

As acting worlds collide and Jefferson’s career implodes, he discovers some truths about himself and his relationships with other people… along with his inner Lear!

Based on an original story by Jonathan Gershfield and John Ross, writers Ian Hislop and Nick Newman are now revisiting their film screenplay to recreate it for the intimate stage of Bagnor's Watermill Theatre.

Tickets: 01635 46044, watermill.org.uk.