It was fantastic to see a such a well-acted and produced play in my local theatre last week, evidence of a pool of talent on our doorstep.

Buggerall was directed by Victoria Wakefield, a first for her, and it proved a success. She gave us a fast-paced production which held the audience and had us laughing at one moment and gripped the next as the modern-day story of love and loss unfolded.

This contemporary play was written by Jon Tregenna in homage to Dylan Thomas as an updated and lyrical take on parochial life in the Welsh village of Buggerall that might well have been the fictional Llareggub in Under Milk Wood.

Gone were the watchmakers and drapers, replaced by the hairdressers and a gift shop and, irreverently, the chapel converted to a holiday home.

The characters, their eccentricities, humour, wit and hypocrisies had everyone laughing and then we were silenced by the grave theme – time changes everything irreversibly.

Drunken Duncan and Doolally Sal were just two of the characters that entertained us but Grom, played by Matthew Bragg as a waster turned philospher, was outstanding. His fluid, natural acting just brought you from your seat and into the set. A poetic and spellbinding production with which anyone could identify.