A DRAMA telling the deeply moving story of an England cricketer will be performed in Dorchester.

The Long Walk Back tells the epic story of an international sporting star’s catastrophic fall from grace. England all-rounder Chris Lewis enjoyed a meteoric rise to fame and fortune in the 1990s.

Playing 85 tests and one day internationals for England he seemed on the verge of greatness when he was named England’s International Cricketer of The Year in 1994. Within months of his cricketing career ending, however, his life lay in ruins when he was sentenced to 13 years in prison for smuggling cocaine into the UK.

Beginning with his arrest at Gatwick Airport in 2008 and an attempted suicide on his first night in custody, The Long Walk Back charts the extraordinary journey that took Lewis from the brink of despair to a profound moral awakening.

Playing the lead role of Chris Lewis will be Martin Edwards, who has worked extensively in theatre and film. He is supported by Scott Bayliss who plays the enigmatic part of The Other Man.

Scott, who is Bristol born and bred, was a member of the 2014/2015 Made in Bristol programme produced in association with Bristol Old Vic.

Performances will also be staged in Portland and Aylesbury prisons as part of rehabilitation programmes designed to reduce reoffending particularly amongst Young Offenders.

There will be a post-show Q&A session with Chris Lewis and RoughHouse Theatre Director Shane Morgan after each performance. There will be Q and A after the show with Chris Lewis (in person)

n The Long Walk Back, Dorchester Corn Exchange, Dorchester, Sunday, April 14, 7pm. Call Dorchester Arts for tickets.