A TRAINING centre with the name of one of Britain's greatest heros is conquering the Southern Hemisphere.

Nelson Training, of Welland near Malvern, Worcestershire, is tapping into a vast market in interactive drama training in Australia, thanks to market research received from UK Trade & Investment via Business Link West Mercia.

UK Trade & Investment, the Government body set up to support British companies in overseas trade, helps companies in finding new markets through its passport programme, a scheme that gives exporters the training, planning and ongoing support they need to succeed overseas.

Nelson Training sessions use interactive drama from actors, not lectures, presentation or role-play. Training covers most aspects of customer care including conflict or delivering bad news, staff appraisal and feedback.

"The largest English speaking markets first thought to be ideal were Canada and the USA but UKTI research redirected our thoughts toward Australia where their culture and sense of humour are more comparable to that of the UK," said Viv Nelson, managing director of Nelson Training.

"We first seriously tested the market with a team of UK actors travelling to Australia.

"Then, through UKTI contacts in Chambers of Commerce and Industry in Queensland and New South Wales, we were able to provide taster sessions in Sydney and Brisbane. Since then we have received daily enquiries."

Nelson Training now employs actors from NEDA, the Australian equivalent of RADA, which produced the likes of Russell Crowe and some of the actors from Chitty Chitty Bang Bang.

"We just returned from delivering training to staff at the Taronga Zoo in Sydney and we are preparing for re-bookings in late summer and early autumn. We are also looking at working for the New Zealand Government," added Mrs Nelson.