THE legend of King Arthur was given a twist by pupils and staff at a Basingstoke school as they updated the classic tale with a space age theme.


In the unique adaption, 'Astroknight' King Arthur pulled a lightsaber instead of a sword from the stone, and the costumes were a mixture of medieval and space-themed.
 

The performances at Fairfields Primary School were the culmination of a two-year project funded by about £9,500 from The British Council.
 

The school successfully applied to be part of the Comenius Project in 2010 and was linked with schools in Romania, Germany and Portugal.
Their joint theme was one of myths and legends, and Fairfields has been exploring the legend of King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table.
A number of exchange visits between staff at the four schools have taken place and pupils have been encouraged to learn about different cultures within Europe as part of the project.
 

Mrs Claire Warwick, a Year 6 teacher who helped to organise the play, said that the pupils at the Council Road school, in Basingstoke, had learned a huge amount about the legend and had thoroughly enjoyed taking part in the performance.
 

She said: “Fifty-four children took part in the performance.
“They even helped with writing the script.
“We put on a play every year but this was a particularly important one.
“There was a full house for both performances.”
 

Headteacher Sue Davies said that the project has been so beneficial for the pupils that they are planning on applying for the grant again next year.
She said: “The Comenius Project has been fantastic.
“As a multi-cultural school, we wanted to explore different cultures which exist around Europe.”