"Trust me, I am not bringing you anything boring," is Tom Conti's message to Sussex audiences as his latest show opens on Monday at the Theatre Royal.

Glasgow-born Conti has a famously throaty voice that made him a sex symbol in the film Shirley Valentine and he purrs and charms when he talks to you.

Oscar-nominated for Reyben, Reuben and acclaimed for his performance in Jeffery Bernard Is Unwell, Conti is coming to Brighton to play yet another drunk, this time American matinee idol of the Thirties John Barrymore.

Conti says: "I hope I am not being typecast by playing another drunk but this is another fabulous play about one of the characters who virtually founded Hollywood.

"The play won many awards in America. This is the first time it has been seen on this side of the Atlantic.

"John Barrymore, for whom Drew is his granddaughter, was a legend of silent films and one of the few who survived and prospered very well in the talkies.

"He was a matinee idol all through the Twenties, Thirties and Forties and was a superb classical actor.

"He played Richard III and Hamlet in London to great acclaim and was championed by all the prominent British actors of his day. He did like a drink, however.

"Barrymore was the man who invented the modern way of doing Shakespeare, making the characters believable as real people and getting away from the declamatory nonsense that was the usual way of doing it. He revealed just how marvellous Shakespeare was at creating real people.

"One Helluva Life takes place in 1942 when he is trying to recreate his classical roles. He is down on his luck, has enough money to drink and dine well only if he dies within a few days and is struggling to remember his lines.

"It sounds as though he is a very sad character but he isn't. This is a very funny play. It is just him and his prompter trying to get things together and reminiscing about life.

"Barrymore was a merry drunk, an affable man who loved life."

Conti himself only drinks rarely. He enjoys a little wine with dinner but not much more.

He says: "I find drink makes me fall asleep. Both Barrymore and Jeffery Bernard were energised by booze."

One Helluva Life takes a funny look at a talented man and a life on stage and in front of the cameras of Hollywood.

Tickets £13-£21, starts 7.45pm, 2.45pm Thursday/Saturday matinees. Call 01273 328488.