ACTOR Angus Hubbard was determined to hit the big time despite struggling to land auditions.

And he has now found what he hopes will be the ideal solution - hiring his own theatre.

Angus will be starring in and producing the self-penned play after spending £5,000 to rent out the Etcetera theatre in London.

But the 24-year-old, who is working with friend Alathea Wiles on the project, admits he is taking a big risk.

Angus, from Hurstpierpoint, said: "We've both found auditions quite hard to come by, so we thought we might as well write our own parts.

"It is definitely a case of sink or swim for us. If it is a success we can plough any money we make back into staging other ventures.

"If it isn't, I hope to be able to stay in acting but I will certainly have to consider my future."

Angus has taken three weeks off work, selling tractor parts at the Agricultural Store in Hurstpierpoint High Street, to concentrate on the project.

He hopes the play, called funny , will help him find an agent and then land other parts.

He said: "Any decent agents will want to see you in something before taking you on.

"We need to make sure we get a full house at least for the first week so the reviewers aren't just sitting there on their own.

"I know we both work well together as a double act so we are just hoping the play all comes together and is successful."

Angus was also given cash backing by his mother to set up his own production company.

The play, about two people trying to write a comedy, has already been well received at the Powerhouse Theatre in Wakefield, Yorkshire, where it was commissioned as part of an arts festival.

Angus and Alathea are performing the play there again on March 3 to fine-tune the script and to raise money for the planned three week-long run in London, which starts on April 20.

Angus said the production would not have been possible without the help of friends and relatives.

He said: "A friend of mine who is a carpenter has built all the sets free of charge and local people have helped out in basic ways.

"A lot of local people are coming up to London to support the play and we're hoping it will be successful."

For further information, contact Angus on 01273 834057.

Converted for the new archive on 30 June 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.