In the 1940s there existed, under the auspices of the Tilehurst Methodist
Church, a thriving organisation known as The Social and Recreational Club. There were also several youth organisations. In
1943 one of these, the Boys Club, put on an evening of entertainment, which included a one-act play. This inspired The Social
and Recreational Club to venture into the field of amateur dramatics with a production of 'The House at Arrow Ghyll'. From
this questionable masterpiece the Drama Club was formed, the name chosen by the members. They got into their stride with a
number of productions put on in the Hall in some discomfort. We believe the first of these, in 1945, was 'Quiet Week-end'.
Later the Youth Hall was built at The Triangle, roughly where Barclays Bank now stands. This immediately suggested a better
title for the Drama Club which was re-named Triangle Players.
We embarked on a series of productions, growing in experience, confidence
and ambition as time went by. In the repertoire were the following, (not in chronological order):-
They Came to a City...J.B. Priestley
This Happy Breed...
Hay Fever...
Blithe Spirit...Noel Coward
The Living Room...Graham Greene
The Diary of Anne Frank...
She Stoops to Conquer...Oliver Goldsmith
Pink String and Sealing Wax....M. Pertwee
The 'Sailor' sequence of plays
House by the Lake...A thriller
Beside the Seaside...Perhaps our most popular
The opening of the new hall with its greatly improved stage made
life much easier and productions that much more professional.
In the 1950s we decided to venture into pantomime. These were written,
and still are, by the members and became an instant hit: so much so that it became necessary to mount a third performance
on the two Saturdays, making a total of eight performances. In addition there was the dress rehearsal to which Senior Citizens
were invited in later years. We were also responsible for a number of events in the Church such as Nativity plays.
The early years were adventurous. The Church supported us financially
until we became established, the group containing a larger proportion of Church members in those days. The then leader
and producer, the late Alan Wiles, saw Drama as a 'side door' into the church.
