A CAST of mean and moody puppets show no mercy in a tense spaghetti western showdown.

The secret life of a traffic warden is revealed.

Miserable Malcolm dispenses sheer unadulterated misery to one and all.

These are just a few of the delights in store at this weekend’s Stroud Theatre Festival.

From Friday to Sunday, the town is set to host three days of performance, including children’s shows, classics, comedy, spoken word and award winning dramas playing at seven different venues.

There will be over 80 performances by 30 different companies, many of which are Gloucestershire based, but others are coming from Bristol, Exeter, Brighton, Devon and even as far away as Lithuania.

Weekend highlights include performances from popular Stroud comedian Helen Wood, who will be appearing in three different shows over the course of the festival. As well as presenting her solo show What Kind of Fool am I?, she can be seen in her comedy improv show Village People and she is also taking part in Chris Head’s Stroud comedy sketch showcase, Scuttle.

Science meets slapstick in Last Baguette theatre company’s What’s the Matter? - a sci-fi adventure through the strange and wonderful world of quantum physics, featuring physical comedy, proper science and a search for Schrodinger’s cat.

Otherstory, a puppetry collective from Bristol, tell the story of the notorious 18th Century jailbreaker and hero of the people, Jack Sheppard, in their table-top paper theatre show, Escape was on Everyone’s Mind.

In addition to performances, there are also workshops for adults and older children in stand up comedy, dance and commedia dell’arte.

To find out more about the fourth Stroud Theatre Festival visit www.stroudtheatrefestival.co.uk or pick up a brochure which are available at Stroud Tourist Information Centre and other outlets around the county.