A DRAMA group will be performing a famous thriller adapted for the stage next week.

Maldon Drama Group is staging The 39 Steps from next Thursday to next Saturday with a 7.45pm start each night.

A spokesman said: “Following the recent success of Hi-de-Hi!, Maldon Drama Group are once more treading the boards with John Buchan’s The 39 Steps, adapted by Patrick Barlow.

“Mix a Hitchcock masterpiece with a juicy spy novel, add a dash of Monty Python and you have The 39 Steps, a fast-paced whodunnit for anyone who loves the magic of theatre.

“This award-winning treat is packed with non-stop laughs, dozens of zany characters played by a ridiculously small cast of eight, an onstage plane crash, handcuffs, missing fingers and some good old-fashioned romance.

“A riotous blend of virtuoso performances and wildly inventive stagecraft, The 39 Steps amounts to an unforgettable evening of pure pleasure.”

In The 39 Steps, a man with a boring life meets a woman with a thick accent who says she’s a spy.

When he takes her home, she is murdered.

Soon, a mysterious organisation called The 39 Steps is hot on the man’s trail in a nationwide manhunt that climaxes in a death-defying finale.

Performances are at Maldon Town Hall.

Tickets cost £9 for stalls and £10 for the balcony.

They are available from Maldon Tourist Information Centre in Wenlock Way, online at ticketsource.co.uk/mdg or by calling 01621 856503.