THEY drove a full-size car on stage, gave Hollywood stars John Hannah and Adam Sinclair their first acting roles and once sent a hospital bed all the way to Arran.

East Kilbride Rep, one of the country's longest-running amateur theatre companies, turns 60 this year.

To celebrate, the group is throwing open its doors for a special event next Saturday (March 14).

ANN FOTHERINGHAM and photographer KIRSTY ANDERSON got a sneak preview of what's in store.

SOMEWHERE in EK Rep's props 'hut', amongst the hoedown dresses, handcuffs and hipflasks, there is a papier mache smoked ham, and Hazel Brown is on a mission to find it.

"Aha, here it is," she beams, holding the impressive fake joint (necessary for a recent production of 'Allo 'Allo) aloft, before setting it down alongside a turn-of-the-century candlestick telephone, World War One gas mask and a crooked walking stick which may or may not have belonged to music hall supremo Harry Lauder.

"It came from Popplewell's in Ayr, and we know they had some of Harry's stuff, but we can't say for definite," explains Hazel, who has been a member of EK Rep for 50 years.

Her first production, aged 19, was the panto Dick Whittington, at which she played the piano. Fifty years later, she wrote and directed a new version of the story - and she is also wardrobe mistress and the person in charge of organising the props store.

"I'm labelling everything as I go through it all - not for us," she says quickly, "because of course I know when the Eternal Beau tea set dates back to, and where the Shirley Temple wigs are, but for the people who come after us."

She adds: "Most of us who run the Rep are getting on a bit now, so we need the next generation to come through and take the reins."

Ken Lawton, who recently took a backseat from acting with the Rep to run its publicity operation (and help Hazel with the props) agrees.

"We are a busy group, still going strong after 60 years, with more than 300 season ticket holders - but of course we need more young people to get involved," says Ken, who joined the company 26 years ago.

Ken and Hazel are hoping the open day, which will include a tour of the Rep's performance base, East Kilbride Village Theatre, will bring more people on board.

"It's a chance for us to celebrate the anniversary and show people all the great things that go on behind the scenes," he says.

The props and costume store, which will also be open to visitors, is packed to the rafters with a delightful assortment of stuff.

There are suitcases, 20 of them, from different vintages; a 1970s star-shaped clock; RAF uniforms; pretty parasols; a skull; a goose costume; bottles of whisky; and shoes - lots and lots of shoes.

"My aim is to sort them all out into sizes so you just have to look at the boxes and you can go straight to what you need, but I haven't quite managed it yet," sighs Hazel. She brightens up, adding: "But look at the wigs. They used to be at the back, and were really difficult to find - now you can tell exactly what they are at a glance."

East Kilbride Rep's first production was Bachelors are Bold, in 1955. Local man John McNicol talked some friends into forming the club to raise money for the emerging EK Thistle Football Club.

In the early days, the group rehearsed in the Village School and the Public Hall, which is now the Village Theatre. Desperate for their own premises, they bought a wooden hut from Linlithgow Pigeon Club for £60 and rebuilt it on land behind the theatre.

EK Rep's first pantomime was Dick Whittington in 1966 and the tradition - the show is written and produced by the group - is still going strong, featuring 60 local children annually and running for two weeks.

It started its one-act play festival in 1985 - now known as RepFest, it attracts amateur dramatics clubs from all over Scotland.

In 1996, the wooden hut was demolished to make way for new industrial units and the Rep acquired one for its new props and costumes store. It's still known affectionately as The Hut.

Famous faces who cut their acting teeth with the Rep include John Hannah, Adam Sinclair, Julie Wilson Nimmo and Professor Iain Stewart, and the group also lays claim to providing Lorraine Kelly with her first bylined article in the EK News when she came along to review a show.

"I've always loved the challenge of finding unusual props," says Ken, as we get a tour of the unit and its packed shelves.

"Once I got a hospital bed from Hairmyres, just up the road, and we let an Arran drama group borrow it too - so it went all the way over there on the ferry, and back again.

"We also managed to get a full-sized car on the stage once by driving it up a ramp at the side door."

"I spent weeks trying to find an old-fashioned bingo machine. I managed it, eventually - it was only on the stage for five minutes but that's not the point."

He grins: "It's the thrill of the chase that's fun, and the satisfaction of finding that unusual, strange prop you need for a production."

EK Rep's 60th anniversary exhibition and tours take place on Saturday, March 14 from 11am until 5pm at the Village Theatre, Maxwell Drive, East Kilbride. For more information visit www.ek-rep.org.uk

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