A LOCAL audience can have, well - Great Expectations, because a Dickens classic is coming to Malvern Theatres in the New Year.

Tilted Wig Productions will present a stage version of one of the greatest nineteenth century novel, adapted by Ken Bentley, for a run from February 8 to February 10.

A spokesman said: "The team who delighted audiences here with Travels with my Aunt in 2015 and Our Man in Havana this summer are back with Dickens’s timeless classic in a powerful new stage adaptation

"Following a terrifying encounter with an escaped convict, young Pip is given an unexpected chance to better himself by visiting the reclusive and mysterious Miss Havisham."

The spokesman added: "In the decaying grandeur of her house, Pip falls in love with Estella and helped by an anonymous benefactor, he moves to the bustling city to pursue his dream of winning Estella’s heart and of becoming part of the educated elite.

"Peopled by some of Dickens’s most colourful and memorable characters and painted in rich, vivid colours across a vast landscape of people and locations, this stunning new version promises a powerful and theatrical telling of Dickens’s universally loved masterpiece."

Olivier Award-winning actress, Nichola McAuliffe, leads the cast as the iconic Miss Havisham.

Nichola is best known for her role in the long running TV series, Surgical Spirit, the films Tomorrow Never Dies and Chéri and her many stage appearances including Kiss Me Kate for the RSC, The Night of the Iguana in the West End and Alan Bennett’s The Lady in the Van.

Tickets and further details on 01684 892277.