A top-quality comedian will tell the tale of a daring experiment to run a comedy club in the conflict-torn West Bank on a South West stage.

Mark Thomas will perform Showtime From The Frontline at Bristol’s Old Vic theatre, in King Street, on February 12 at 8pm.

The comedian travelled to the Palestinian refugee camp of Jenin, to perform at the Jenin Freedom Theatre, and he quickly learned it is difficult to celebrate freedom of speech in a place with little freedom at all.

And his two-day stint performing in the Middle East left South London satirist with a wealth of new friends and stories to tell, with Faisal Abualheja and Alaa Shehada – a pair of burgeoning performers from the Jenin Freedom Theatre joining him on stage in Bristol.

Tickets for this show, priced £21, are available from 01179 877877 or online via www.bristololdvic.org.uk