A theatre company brings an intriguing new production to Southfleet next week

Channel Theatre Company will be at the Southfleet Village hall with a new adaptation of The London Merchant. The production is based on London Merchant George Lillo's 18th century play, which broke all records when it ran at the Drury Lane Theatre during the 1730s.

The play is about George Barnwell, a hard-working clerk to a wealthy merchant, who fails under the spell of a manipulative woman, Sarah Millwood.

However, Channel's production includes some surprises, as Lillo's play is set alongside a modern-day story of corruption in the City of London. Alongside the downfall of George Barnwell the audience will follow the career of Essex-born Justin Treaves, a young man with ambitions to become a city dealer in the 1980s. Both stories are interlaced with live, original music which ranges from the baroque to 80s rock.

- Feb 14, The London Merchant, Southfleet Village Hall, Dale Road, Southfleet, 8pm, £5.50/£7, 01474 833622.