The following information was compiled from an article by former BODS President Derrick Graham, and archive material including a Dorking Advertiser article for the 60th anniversary. There are photos and programmes for some of the early shows in the Past Productions section, but if you have other pictures or archive material then do please contact us

How it started

The society was started in 1936 by Commander Jack Hatch and his wife Norah, and their neighbour on Pebble Hill, Rachel Rundle. The first mention of 'Betchworth Dramatic and Entertainment Society' is in publicity for a performance of Baa Baa Black Sheep in the Village Hall by The Leatherhead Players on Weds 19th February 1936, with profits being devoted to improvement of the stage and the formation of a new society. The Memorial Hall had been built in 1926, but with the opening of the A25 Betchworth bypass it was now just a few yards from the new road, accessible to Reigate and Dorking. The hall had not been built for staging plays, having just a raised platform which stopped short of the wall at one end to allow access to a kitchen at the rear.

The exact date of the inaugural meeting isn't known, but there was obviously sufficient interest to establish the society, with acting members paying annual subscriptions of 5 shillings. The first President and vice-President were Mr Tritton and Mrs DuBuisson respectively. The very first production was The Ghost Train by Arnold Ridley (better known later for playing Private Godfrey in Dad's Army) , performed on 11 & 12th December 1936, although the venue was nearby Leigh WI Hall (now Abbots Pass Hall) rather than the Memorial Hall. Judging from the programme, the society was then known simply as 'Betchworth Dramatic Society', and this appears to have continued until 1938 when the name B.O.D.S first appears.

Early Years

The second production, in 1937 was Patience, after which Gilbert & Sullivan Operas were to become an annual event together with plays, although productions were of course interrupted by the Second World War. The Society re-formed in 1946 and carried on in the same pattern as before until 1951 when the chairman came up with the idea of a one-act play competition between the local drama societies, as part of the National Festival of Community Drama. Eventually seventeen companies became involved, providing a full week of theatre and, if they had adequate facilities they, in turn, hosted the Betchworth Drama Festival. Similar festivals started all over the country and soon Betchworth became the first round in the All England Drama Festival, when the winners from each area went on to compete against each other. 

Director: Alison Cooper
Musical Director: Ian Stone
Performances: 9-12 November 2016

A unique new musical by Storm Productions, adapted from the original Victorian novel by George Eliot. Set in the early 19th century, it tells of the falsely accused weaver Silas, who, rejected by his fiancée and outcast by his religious fellowship, leads a solitary existence driven by his work and the accumulation of gold which becomes his only solace. The unexpected father/daughter relationship which develops between Silas and an abandoned child brings joy, friendship and respect back into his life. In the musical the story is retold in the late 19th century by a landlady and her son, to a traveller who has taken shelter at the inn.

This is a fairly dark tale but with an underlying theme of hope and redemption in a vivid portrayal of a sheltered rural community and its suspicion and mistrust of the unfamiliar.

Written by Phil Ryan and David Ford, with additional music by Denny Bertin

Cast (in order of appearance)

Production Team

Review by Jon Fox on behalf of NODA

Photos by Mick Mercer

Director: Diane Mayall

Performances: 18-20 May 2016 (also excerpts at BRBAC Harlequin Arts Festival, 14 April 2016)

Mixed Doubles is a compilation of short plays and monologues on the theme of marriage and relationships. It features works by accomplished authors: Alan Ayckbourn, John Bowen, Lyndon Brook, David Campton, George Melly, Alun Owen, Harold Pinter, James Saunders and Fay Weldon which are as pertinent now as when they were first performed in 1969. The sequence of plays presents a progression from a young couple just married (A Man's best friend), to an old man and woman sitting in a cemetery (Resting Place)

Cast

Production Team

Photos by cast members