NEW book by author Patrick Howell, Consistently Brilliant on a Breezy Hilltop – A History of the Cotswold Players – The first 100 years, tells the story of Stroud's premier acting group.

For just over 100 years, the Cotswold Players have brought drama, humour, murder, mystery and musicals to the stage – sometimes against incredible odds.

Founded by Constance Smedley in 1911, they began as a touring group, often two-up on a bicycle, with a bag of props on the back.

This happy band fought off competition from the Talkies in the 1930s; faltered noticeably during two World Wars when most of the male talent was otherwise engaged; but by the 1950s they had raised enough funds to buy a dilapidated Primitive Methodist Chapel as their permanent base.

The new theatre officially opened as the Cotswold Playhouse in 1957, but it remained an ongoing project, and it took time and money to keep it habitable and within the laws of building regulations.

It was not until 2008 that a half-million pound extension made it the theatre that it is today.

And now you can read all about the highs and lows, peaks and troughs, trials and tribulations of their stunning achievement, both theatrical and building-wise, brick by brick, in Patrick Howell’s new book, Consistently Brilliant on a Breezy Hilltop – A History of the Cotswold Players – The first 100 years.

There is an official launch of the book on September 23 at 7.30pm at the Playhouse. Author Patrick Howell will give a brief introduction to the book, the result of over three years’ hard work, and will be signing copies purchased that evening.

The book is also on sale at the Stroud Bookshop.