Dickens parody Bleak Expectations is heading to Hitchin's Queen Mother Theatre next month.

Described as 'the story Charles Dickens might have written after drinking too much gin', the play runs from Monday, March 4 to Saturday, March 9.

To book tickets go to www.qmt.org.uk.

A licensed bar and refreshments will be available.

Written by Mark Evans, the play is based on the award-winning BBC Radio 4 series of the same name.

The story follows half-orphan Pip's extraordinary exploits with his sisters Pippa and Poppy and best friend Harry Biscuit, as they attempt to escape the dastardly clutches of Mr Gently Benevolent, defeat the hideous Hardthrasher siblings and deflect disaster at every turn.

READ MORE

The show is described as a "hilarious, chaotic caper, featuring dastardly villains, preposterous names, pulse-quickening romances, heart-rending death scenes, and definitely, probably, hopefully a happy ending".

Bleak Expectations made its world premiere at the Watermill Theatre in Newbury, Berkshire in 2022, before transferring to London's West End.

In the West End version, a different guest star appears each week as the narrator. Narrators have included Alexander Armstrong, Stephen Fry, Lee Mack, Sue Perkins, Sally Philips, Adjoa Andoh, Julian Clary, Jack Dee, Nina Wadia, Stephen Mangan and Dermot O'Leary.