Drainspotter Archie Workman is star of show from Screen 3 Productions

‘Drainspotting’ tells the story of Archie’s rise to fame from unclogging blocked drains in Colton Parish to creating a name for himself on the after-dinner circuit and featuring in news stories from all over the world.

The idea for the screening came when directors Andy Oxley and Joshua Gaunt visited Ulverston to take photographs of Archie for the Dull Men of Great Britain calendar.

Screen 3 Productions' short nine-minute film is likely to send Archie’s reputation to another level with the filmmaking duo having won awards and screened at film festivals from all over the world, including featuring on BBC3 and Amazon Prime.

Archie Workman doing what he loves most - drainspotting. Credit: Screen 3 Productions (Image: Screen 3 Productions)

“I couldn’t believe it when they approached me,” Archie said.

“They came up for two days and had me running up and down and driving down these country lanes asking if I could do things a bit slower then a bit faster, I was absolutely exhausted.

“I’m hoping this film will make me the most famous drainspotter in the world. Becoming a film star is quite an honour I suppose. I might get a statue one day, you never know.”

Speaking about the production, Mr Oxley said: “We were immediately struck by the epic scenery of the Lakes combined with Archie’s niche fascination with drain covers. We just had to make a film about it.

“We try to make entertaining films about ordinary, everyday subjects. We have previously made films about tea and cake, and even toilets, so drain covers felt like a natural progression.”

The show will be screened on July 22 at the Laurel and Hardy Museum in Ulverston and will be accompanied by a line-up of humorous short documentaries based around the theme of men and their curious hobbies.

Tickets are priced at £5 and can be purchased online at https://www.ticketsource.co.uk/drainspotting. All proceeds will go to the St Mary’s Hospice, Ulverston.