A theatre festival has seen a 13.8 per cent increase in ticket sales.

The Sidmouth Summer Play Festival 2024 at the Manor Pavilion Theatre has been hailed a success, with ticket sales and audience numbers returning to pre-pandemic levels.

The festival has been running for more than 65 years, with the theatre hosting a variety of plays this year, including thrillers, comedies, and farces.

The theatre said it is the balance of heritage and excellence that keeps people returning each year.

After the success of the season, both in ticket sales and performance quality, the artistic director Paul Taylor Mills and Andrew Beckett, the main producer, are already reading scripts and choosing the plays for next year.

Councillor Nick Hookway, East Devon District Council’s portfolio holder for culture, leisure, sport, and tourism, said: "It’s great to see The Manor Pavilion thrive, the theatre is truly an asset to the community."

Audience numbers appear to be back to pre-pandemic levels with box office takings at a record high, boasting a 13.8 per cent increase from last year.

The theatre continues to adapt and grow in the face of challenges and changing times.

In the current climate of the arts in the UK, it is reassuring to see a positive story and East Devon leading the way.

Reviewer and playwright, Cormac Richards, is writing a book about the history of rep theatre here in Sidmouth and would love to hear from members of the public if they have pictures or news clippings from the play season 1958 to 2012.

He has already been conducting interviews and looking through archives, documenting past seasons.

By putting together stories, Cormac hopes to place Sidmouth within a wider context of theatre history.

He said: "The Manor Pavilion Theatre is unique in the history of UK theatre, being the venue to the longest running repertory season in the country.

"A tradition that needs celebration and support which I hope this book will help to achieve.

"May this Sidmouth gem live long and prosper."