The year has, once again, flown by and it’s time to applaud the best of amateur theatre in the area.

Yes, it’s The Paulies - the awards that have no physical entity, but in which I celebrate what I consider to be the best that I have seen this year.

BEST PLAY

As You Like It - Dedham Players; Be My Baby- Headgate Theatre Productions; Blood Brothers. (Mad Hatter); Jeeves and Wooster in Perfect Nonsense. (Chameleon’s Web); Marjorie Prime- Headgate Theatre Productions.

BEST DIRECTOR OF A PLAY

Jenny Burke for As You Like It; Malcolm Kimmance for Marjorie Prime; Will Mugford for Blood Brothers; James Potter for Jeeves and Wooster in Perfect Nonsense; Steve Wooldridge for Be My Baby.

BEST MUSICAL

Lucky Stiff (Gallery Players); My Fair Lady (Platform); Our House (Mad Hatter)

BEST DIRECTOR OF A MUSICAL

Wade Ablitt for Our House; Kerry King for My Fair Lady; Jon Tavener for Lucky Stiff

BEST ACTOR

Les Chisnall for The Ladykillers; Paul Reed for Jeeves and Wooster; Joseph Sales for Jeeves and Wooster; Harry Totham for Blood Brothers; Jack Naylor for Blood Brothers

BEST ACTRESS

Kel Ashton for Be My Baby; Sara Green for Marjorie Prime; Suzanne Harknett for Bazaar and Rummage. (Headgate Productions); Eleanor Kent- Dyson for As You Like It; Freya Scott for Blood Brothers

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR

Aaron Bowater for The Ladykillers; Matthew Hankin for The Ladykillers; Peregrine Mauturin-Baird for Jeeves and Wooster and The Ladykillers; Connor McBurney for An Ideal Husband. (Chameleon’s Web); Rob Sadler for As You Like It

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS

Helen Bridge for Bazaar and Rummage; Meg Cranfield for Blood Brothers; Ivy Dillon for As You Like It; Lilly Matthews for An Ideal Husband; April Rand for Be My Baby

BEST MUSICAL THEATRE PERFORMANCE

Kel Ashton for Our House; Tom Beattie for Our House; Stephanie Brown for Lucky Stiff; Kerry Gullen for My Fair Lady; Dave King for My Fair Lady; Paul Stone for Lucky Stiff.

... And the winners to be announced next week!