FRAZER Hines and Stephen McGann head the cast of Thomas Hardy's Far from the Madding Crowd, in a new adaptation of the Dorset love story, at Kendal's Brewery Arts Centre, next Thursday, Friday, and Saturday, (June 12/13/14, 8pm, with a 2pm matinee on the Saturday).

The two, well-known faces of television star together in one of the classic tales of English literature presented by Middle Ground Theatre Company, and adapted by Ali Gorton, the creative drive behind the award-winning theatre company.

As well as adaptations, Ali is an actor, but focuses these days mainly on writing and set design.

Frazer Hines is best-known as Joe Sugden, from Emmerdale Farm (now Emmerdale), a character he played for 16 years, which established him as one of the country's favourite farmers.

At the tender age of nine, he was given the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to work with the late, great Charlie Chaplin in A King in New York.

He later appeared in The Last Valley with Omar Sharif and Michael Caine, and in Zeppelin with Michael York.

But his first major television part was Jan in the BBC's Silver Sword.

Roles in Emergency Ward 10 followed, then Coronation Street and Doctor Who, before he joined the original cast which launched Emmerdale in 1972. Post-Emmerdale, he pursued unfilled ambitions in TV, comedy, films, presenting and theatre, receiving great acclaim for his image-changing portrayal of a Wiltshire murderer in the first part of ITV's Expert Witness drama, and the unsavoury PE teacher in Carlton Television's Out of Sight.

Meanwhile, another famous face in Far from the Madding Crowd (who strangely enough also appeared in Emmerdale, as Sean Reynolds) is Stephen McGann, one of the famed four McGann brothers - Joe, who was in the TV comedy, The Upper Hand, and soap Night and Day; Paul and Mark.

Stephen has extensive radio credits and has appeared in a host of TV shows, such as Boon, Brookside, Juliet Bravo and Bergerac.

But it was his performance alongside his three brothers in the award-winning BBC drama The Hanging Gale, that provided an historic moment in television.

Brewery box office 01539-725133.

June 5, 2003 11:00