ONE of JB Priestley's funniest comedies - When We Are Married - is being staged at Worcester's Swan Theatre from tomorrow until Saturday, October 16.

The cast of 14 is a mixture of nine familiar stalwarts of the local company and five talented new members.

Performances begin at 7.30 each night.

Returning after a break of several years is Keith Bridgewater from Evesham, who has lost count of the number of times he has acted on the Swan stage.

He plays the classic part of the photographer, Henry Ormonroyd (performed by Priestley himself in the original production).

The talented Judith Holden is back on stage and looking forward to an enjoyable run, while Frank Welbourne is repeating the performance he gave as Herbert Soppitt in 1996.

Other Swan regulars are: Gabrielle Bullock, who plays the belligerent Mrs Northrop; John Kershaw from Malvern and Barbara Seers from Worcester, who play the hosts, Alderman and Mrs Helliwell; Sue Hawkins (recently seen in Talking Heads) is Clara Soppitt; Robert Hanna plays Councillor Parker and June Hanna (who also directs) plays the ageing 'floozie', Lottie Grady.

Making their first appearance at the Swan are Sally Metcalfe as Ruby Birtle the maid, originally played by Patricia Hayes in 1938, and Tom Coxon-Stanhope and Lizzie Crow, the young lovers. Carl Dunnington plays the reporter and Rob Sykes the Reverend Mercer.

The company has great faith in the play, having performed it three times before - in 1955 at the Co-op Hall as the SAMA Theatre Group and again at the Swan in 1966 and 1986. The play remains as popular today as it was when it was written in 1938.