A Whitehaven writer who has secured funding to create an audio piece is on the lookout for actors with a local accent.

A few years ago, Emma McGordon wrote a play set in Whitehaven.

"I did some scratch performances of the play but found that actors could not get the Whitehaven accent which is integral to the script," said Emma.

“They were hot pot north at best or some kind of mash-up of Geordie, Lancashire and Irish, but nobody could quite get the real Whitehaven sound.”

Emma has recently secured funding to develop the piece.

"I've done some rewrites and now want to record actual Whitehaven people saying the words. This will be a standalone piece which I'm hoping will lead to a stage production and publication of play text," she said.

“West Cumbrian accents are really unique, if you’re local you can easily tell the difference between Whitehaven and Workington, especially on the vowel sounds.

"It’s not an accent that you hear much and definitely not in the media.

"It’s a great accent and our stories deserve to be told in a way that sounds like us.

"I don’t want a generic northern accent for this piece or dialect, just people who speak the way people in Whitehaven speak every day.”

Free audio acting workshops will take place at Rosehill Theatre later in the month. Two people will be selected to work with Emma and create the recording.

The workshops are being run by director Stefan Escreet (www.stefanescreet.com) on March 22, 6 to 9pm.

Th project is supported by the Arts Council and Rosehill Arts.