RECENTLY, Malvern man Alex Jones has been associated with writing for the stage rather than being on it.

Swan-goers will remember his play, River's Up, in which the River Severn bursts its banks in cataclysmic style, which premiered at the theatre last year.

Fans of Mouthpiece theatre company in Inkberrow will also remember a production last year of his play The Bridge, in which present day Worcester becomes blurred with Civil War era Worcester.

Jones was the man who took the Black Country to America when his play Noise enjoyed critical success in both London and the USA.

But now the writer/actor is back on the stage starring in a brand new adaptation of the 1920s novel Precious Bane.

Well, when I say stage, it's more like a mound of earth underneath open skies, because Precious Bane is an open-air production touring parks and stately homes, including Worcestershire's Witley Court.

Set in the 19th Century, Precious Bane tells the story of Prue Sam and her ambitious brother Gideon whose attempts to make a life for themselves leads them to question not only their own loyalties and morals but the relationship between an increasingly industrial community and the natural world.

"My character is a wizard called Beguildy who is a bit of a confidence trickster and comes to a sticky end," said Jones.

"I've been having magic lessons to do sleight-of-hand stuff, like making a coin appear from nowhere."

Like the rest of the cast Jones is taking in a number of other roles in the play, like townspeople, crowd members and, oddly enough, a 12-year-old girl.

The Witley Court date holds special significance for Jones, because it is a "home gig" for him in the heart of the countryside.

"To be surrounded by nature is going to be fantastic," he said.

"You have to make sure everyone can hear because the acoustics are very different from a theatre and we've been having a voice coach come in to help us."

But becoming a writer or an actor was never part of Jones' plan.

By the time he was in his mid 20s he was doing various industrial jobs and had never been to the theatre.

"It never occurred to me to be an actor," he said.

"A friend dragged me off to the theatre to see Taming of the Shrew in Stratford and it changed my life."

Since then he has enjoyed his fair share of success including being shortlisted for a BAFTA nomination for his film Rhubarb and Roses, and he is still hatching plans for another feature.

And who knows, his character from The Archers, Clive Horrobin, may yet return to Ambridge after being sent down for GBH six years ago.

Precious Bane runs at Witley Court from Thursday to Sunday, July 17 to July 20, at 7.15pm. Tickets are £7.50, concessions £3.50, from Witley Court box office on 01299 896636.

Performances will also be held in Walcot Hall in Shropshire, Tyntesfield in North Somerset and Welford Park in Newbury.