SKIPTON Players return to the stage next week.

They are staging The Hypochondriac, which was written by Moliere in the 17th century, but was adapted by Roger McGough in 2009.

Moliere got the inspiration for the play - which was his final work - from his persistent hacking cough. It was a scathingly funny lampoon on the “quack” medical profession and also the hypochondriacs who ought to know better.

Martin Cole plays the central character, Argan - a perfectly healthy, wealthy gentleman, who is convinced he is seriously ill. So obsessed is he with medical tinkerings and tonics that he is blind to the goings-on in his own household.

However, his most effective cure will not appear in a bottle or a bedpan, but in his sharp-tongued servant (Clementine Bogg-Hargroves), who has a cunning plan to reveal the truth and open her master's eyes.

Other cast members are: Hannah Norton-Barker who plays Argan's daughter, Jo Hartley (second wife), Andrew Walker (notary and apothecary), Liam Burnham (Angelique's lover and physician), Steve Charlton (doctor and brother) and Chris Dixon (doctor's son).

The play is directed by Chris Birch.

He said: "We have some fresh faces in this production in front of the curtain and behind it too. We always need new members both on-stage and off-stage in order to keep consistent standards.

"Rehearsals were fun times for cast and crew as we interpreted this classic adaptation, brought it to life and still managed to retain the anarchic humour along with its Commedia dell'Arte roots."

The show will be staged at the Little Theatre from Tuesday to Saturday, with curtains up at 7.30pm. Tickets are available from 07527 141176 or email skipton.little.theatre@gmail.com