Wilmslow Guild Players will be holding their annual competitive festival of One Act Plays at Wilmslow Guild on Bourne Street.

The Wilmslow Festival of One Act Plays, which has been running for more than 70 years, will see many varied short plays of around 45 minutes presented by groups from all over Cheshire, Manchester and further afield.

Some plays are written especially for the festival.

Festival publicity officer Bill Beton said: “We have had a huge number of entries this year so we are looking forward to a fantastic festival.

“We have 15 plays from 10 different societies running over five nights. There’s a big bias towards comedies this year – nine out of the 15 plays.”

Entries in the festival come from Cheshire Academy of Performing Arts, CHADS, Heald Green Theatre Company, Chelford Players, Knutsford Little Theatre, ACTS, The Whitehead School of Dance and Drama, SLR Theatre, Loose Cannons Drama Group (all the way from Anglesey) and an entry from the festival hosts, Wilmslow Guild Players.

The festival runs from Tuesday 11 to Saturday, June 15, with different plays being presented each night.

The shows are watched by an independent adjudicator who gives a verbal adjudication at the end of each night.

Awards are made on the Saturday night for Best Production (junior, youth and senior) and Best Individual Performance (junior, youth and senior).

There are also two discretionary awards, The Adjudicator’s Award and the Syd Mence Cup for a Piece of Theatre Magic.

The festival is affectionately referred to as ‘The Friendly Festival’ by some of the participating societies, many of whom have been entering for years.

During that time it has seen some famous feet tread the boards, such as Doris Speed, of Coronation Street fame; Alan Garner, the local children’s author; and Albert Finney, now an established international star of stage and screen.

The festival is open to the public, with tickets costing £3 for each night. Tickets can be booked by calling 01625 520126 or emailing tickets@wgp.org.uk

A full running order is on the Wilmslow Guild Players website at www.wgp.org.uk.