THE end of the Second World War and the beginning of a modern world of industry and motor cars saw big changes in the rural way of life.

Countryside traditions which had remained unaltered for centuries changed and have continued to do so, with many of the old ways of life lost forever.

One writer's famous record of the old ways - Cider With Rosie - is being retold in Worcester's Swan Theatre, as a reminder of local life just a lifetime ago. The Swan Theatre Amateur Company is tackling the James Roose-Evans adaptation of the classic tale, which is being directed by Chris Jaeger.

Cider with Rosie is Laurie Lee's autobiographical story of a boy growing up and finding his vocation as a poet deep in the pre-war Cotswold countryside.

He was born in 1914, the second youngest of a family of eight, in the village of Slad.

A Swan Theatre Amateur Company spokesman said: "The village he recalls was rough, beautiful and uncouth but still very much alive.

"He tells of local legends and ghosts, of neighbours and relations and of boys growing up against a half-pagan landscape in which violence and madness, country folly and feasts were all part of the pastoral scene. Nothing moved faster than a horse and cart.

"He saw the end of a way of life that had persisted for a thousand years."

Chris Jaeger is using 16 actors to bring to life the 24 characters surrounding Laurie in the story which has been celebrated by critics and fans ever since.

It runs in Worcester from June 16 to 25, with reduced ticket prices on June 16 and 21. Contact the Huntingdon Arts box office on 01905 611427 for details.