Anne (known by everyone as Annie) Edwards is a well known figure around The Stables; she’s as at home on the stage as a performer as she is manning the box office or keeping the diary in order.

Earlier this summer as part of the Scene and Heard festival Annie was nominated as one of the Female Heroes, she was nominated by Victoria Fay who said there was no one else more deserving of the recognition and described her as ‘…the oracle of the The Stables.’

As part of the exhibition that was set up in the art gallery a soundscape was created in which Jane Midwinter interviewed each of the heroes and also spoke to those who nominated them.

In this podcast we’ve selected Annie’s interview which we are sure you’ll enjoy and we’re pretty certain you’ll find out things about her that didn’t know!

Everyone knows about 9/11 not so many know that when the US closed its airspace, 38 planes carrying nearly 7,000 passengers from around the world were unexpectedly diverted to Gander, Newfoundland, nearly doubling the town’s population overnight.

Come From Away is a heart-warming and multi award-winning musical, based on this remarkable true story. The show follows both the stranded 'come from aways' and the townspeople who opened their homes, schools, and hearts to care for them.

Amid fear and uncertainty, strangers form deep connections, friendships, and even love. The musical celebrates human kindness, resilience, and community spirit in the face of tragedy – and gives us hope in today’s unsettled world.

The One Good Thing or Are Ya Patrick Swayze, in conversation with writer Joe Bravaco by Stables Theatre Hastings

Peter Mould is more than just a well known face around The Stables Theatre, he has been capturing amazing images of the shows and the actors in them for nearly a quarter of a century. So it was great fun to sit down and talk to the man behind the lens and find out that the soon to be 80-year-old has been taking puctures since he was just 14.

This absurdist tragicomedy expands upon the exploits of the ill-fated courtiers Rosencrantz and Guildenstern.

This exhilarating new version presents the play with just four actors, in a rollercoaster of humour and poignancy.

An amateur production brought to you by award-winning Different Theatre. Supported by The Cotton Theatre Trust.

Directed by Sam Chittenden (Meet Me At Dawn). Featuring Ben Baeza, Morgan Corby, Ross Gurney-Randall and Nancy Logan.

Cage Birds/White Lead by Stables Theatre Hastings

Set in the 1960s Murder, Maragret and Me imagines the conversations between two formidable women.

Agatha Christie the ‘Queen of Crime’ is not thrilled that her dearest creation Miss Marple will be played by ‘funniest woman alive’ Margaret Rutherford. Rutherford herself is mortified about the prospect of being involved with a film which depicts murder.

Both carry secrets that they would rather not reveal and Christie turns sleuth to uncover the secret that Rutherford hid to ensure her reputation remained intact.

The two women form an unlikely friendship and they are helped along the way by mysterious ‘spinster’ who bears more than a passing resemblance to a familiar detective.

Chris New and the Stable’s regular acting group are pleased to present their third new play here at the Stable’s Theatre ’SIR’.

Following the success of the heartbreaking Harvest and the hilarious Power of Love, Chris is writing a large-cast production for the main stage, with parts specifically written for each acting group participant, irrespective of their prior experience.

Mayfly explores rebirth in the aftermath of tragedy. Mayfly premiered at the Orange Tree Theatre, Richmond, in April 2018, winning Joe White the Off-West End Award for Most Promising Playwright in 2019.

Set in a Shropshire village this tender and wise play is suffused with grief, loss and unexpected laughs in which a family searches for new beginnings.

Ben thinks his family might be better off without him, but his wife Cat has read in her stars: "Today a very special person will appear from out the blue".

Their daughter Loops is getting ready for a date. It’s her first one, and she has everything crossed.

This production contains adult themes and language and scenes that some may find upsetting – there is smoking in this production – Age suggestion 12+

Patrick Kealey has been described as "...a masterful performer, his renditions of the different characters... are superb."

I've said before that I love meeting interesting people and Patrick Kealey is certainly that. An actor, director, producer and soon to be published author the 71 year old says he can look back on a life that he's lived on his own terms, with few regrets.

He's directing After Miss Julie at The Stables and shortly after that he'll be back on stage with his one-man play The Life and Rhymes of Archy and Mehitabel which we talk about at the end of this interview.

Patrick has theatre running through his veins, he is passionate about what he does and he's sad to see the state of his industry with theatres and production companies closing, life for young actors today genuinely isn't like it used to be.

So sit back, relax and enjoy a fascinating portrait of an actors life and how they eek out a living when work is in short supply and phone isn't ringing