KIDDERMINSTER'S carpet industry and Bewdley's safari park have inspired a short play that will tour Worcestershire in the autumn.

Look, No Hands was one of the winning entries in the "Worcestershire Wise" competition run by Swan Playwrights, who meet at Kidderminster's Rose Theatre each month.

It was written by Sue Downing, of Broome, and traces the fictitious story of Tanya, a former child performer in the circus, who opts for a more conventional life, working in Kidderminster's carpet industry.

"She leads an ordinary life and has a child but she does love animals, still," said Sue, 48, "She has a bit of a fight with herself and looks at whether to bring up the child in a conventional form or follow nature's way."

Tanya's search for the answer leads her to visit West Midland Safari Park, with the action darting back and forth between the present day and the 1970s, when the park first opened.

Sue drew part of her inspiration for the play from a book, My Wild Life, by the safari park's head warden, Bob Lawrence.

Sue has been involved in amateur dramatics for more than 30 years and rejoined Swan Playwrights last December, having orginally joined in 1997, when the group was based in Worcester.

Together with her husband, Stephen, she directed a stage production of Brassed Off in Oldbury last week.

Look, No Hands will be performed at the Rose Theatre between Monday, October 23 and Saturday, 28, as part of a triple bill of the winning plays. The others are Worcester Past Ties, by Sandra Booth and the Bromsgrove-set Lost Continent, by Martin Drury.

The works will also be staged at the Artix, Bromsgrove on Friday, October 20 and Worcester Arts Workshop on Saturday, October 21.

Swan Playwrights, a group for people who want to write works to be performed, is seeking new members and will hold an open day at the Rose on Saturday, between 10am and 12.30pm.

Kate Shaw, a writer who has had her work produced for theatre and radio, will lead a group session.

Last autumn, the group collaborated with the Nonentities, the Rose's resident amateurs, on an evening of monologues called Up Close and Personal, giving the playwrights a shop window for their works.

Writers of all ages and experience are welcomed. Past and present members have written professionally for stage and radio and pitched for television series.

More information is available on 01886 830085 or at www.swanplaywrights.org