DAVID Benson will be hoping to make a good impression when he takes to the stage at Malvern Theatres next Saturday (November 10).

He will be doing the brilliant impersonation of Ken-neth Williams that has proved a roaring success since he first took to the stage at the Edinburgh Fest-ival in 1996.

"I was an unknown actor at the time and I felt I needed a vehicle to announce my presence to the world," he said. "I hit upon Kenneth Williams.

"I knew I could do the voice and I had an interest in him, although I wasn't an avid fan.

"I then discovered that his diaries had just been published and I read them in great detail."

Born in 1926, Williams' first acting break came with the British armed forces' entertainment troupe while serving overseas in Ceylon (Sri Lanka) at the end of the Second World War.

Although he was a serious actor, it is as a star of the Carry On films he is best remembered, appearing in 26 in all.

He also starred in hugely successful BBC Radio shows, including Hancock's Half Hour, Beyond Our Ken, Round the Horne and Just a Minute.

His diaries were published in 1993, five years after his death, giving an insight into, among other things, his homosexuality. His letters followed a year later.

Mr Benson admits that once he had found out more about the dark, complex character that lurked behind Williams' public persona, he started to put more and more of himself into the part he was playing.

"I didn't realise it at the time but I was putting things into the part I didn't like about myself," he said.

"The show is not just about him, it's about me as well, and my childhood."

As a child, Benson won a BBC story-telling competition, and had his winning entry read on Jackanory by none other than Kenneth Williams. The affinity he has built up with the character he plays has succeeded to such an extent that when the BBC wanted someone to read Williams' diaries on television, he was given the job.

"He's a very interesting character to play because there were so many different sides to him, there's a little bit of Kenneth in all of us," said Benson.

Think No Evil of Us - My Life With Kenneth Williams is at 7.30pm. Tickets, £12.50 and £10.50, are available from the box office on 01684 892277.