ABOUT US

The Ayr Fort Players started from humble beginnings in a school classroom at Ayr Academy in 1946 to becoming one of the longest established, much loved amateur dramatic groups in Ayrshire. The earliest productions were staged at Ayr Town Hall, a challenging venue in which to perform drama - limited lighting, bad acoustics, no proscenium, absolutely no changing facilities - but they persevered.   
Then came an absolute revelation for the local drama community – Ayr Burgh Council had been convinced to buy and convert the Robertson Memorial Church into a Civic Theatre. So, from 1951 through to the early 2000s, local drama groups and touring companies had a wonderful new home. The theatre was an ideal size for drama and is still fondly remembered by those who played there or attended performances. In 2009 South Ayrshire Council took the hasty decision to demolish the theatre with concerns that there was an asbestos problem – that was an incredibly sad day.   

The Ayr Fort Players then moved into the Gaiety theatre but, just as they were about to stage How the Other Half Loves, the council shut the theatre down. Luckily there was an opening at Belmont Academy a year later, again a challenging venue but, if nothing else, the group are always up for a challenge. 

Eventually, after the Gaiety Theatre was saved and taken over by Ayr Gaiety Partnership, the Ayr Fort Players had, once again, found a new and exciting home.     Over the years, the Ayr Fort Players, have provided entertainment with classic farces such as See How They Run, Move Over Mrs Markham; quality modern drama – 84 Charing Cross Road, Steel Magnolias; Scottish comedies – Toom Byres, Whisky Galore and stage adaptations of popular TV sitcoms such as Dad’s Army and Fawlty Towers. In fact the Ayr Fort Players were the first to perform the stage adaptation of Fawlty Towers and were also the first amateur group granted the rights to Tony Roper’s famous Scottish comedy The Steamie, which played to packed houses during the 1997 Ayr Festival. 

For Homecoming Scotland 2009, the production was Rikki Fulton’s uproarious A Wee Touch O’ Class. Since then, the productions have covered Alan Ayckbourn’s How the Other Half Loves, another successful production of The Steamie, The Vicar of Dibley, Noises Off, No Sex Please We’re British, The 39 Steps, Stepping Out (which was produced at the Town Hall while the Gaiety was going through a facelift), The Ladykillers, City Lights, Gaslight, Murder on the Nile, etc. The production, before the Covid 19 epidemic took hold, was Don’t Get Your Vicars in a Twist – the last production to take place at the Gaiety before it was forced to close its doors due to the pandemic. We came bouncing back in 2022 with The Happiest Days of Your Life . Then, later that year, we presented an evening of monologues (and one duologue) especially commissioned for the Ayr Fort Players, using local artists, writers and directors under the umbrella of Doormatters. 

In 2023 our spring production was Agatha Crusty and the Village Hall Murders which was enthusiastically received.  Our Autumn production was Dead of Night a thriller, which fell on the same weekend as the International Air Show, so only had two performances. 2024 saw another successful production, this time it was Amateur Rites. In a normal year, the Ayr Fort Players stage two productions, one in spring and one in autumn. Also, they are involved in Ayr’s many cultural events, touring and presenting one act plays. In fact, the autumn of 2024 saw them perform a new play in the shape of a radio show being recorded with live sound effects - Five Go To Glasgow. This was on at the Gaiety Studio in August and then toured Ayrshire. 2025 saw a departure to something much grittier - The Girl on the Train which was met with enthusiastic reviews from our audience. Then we revived Doormatters but with a twist, as we took you through the decades, starting in 1950 and ending up at the present day - Doormatters: Through the Decades was another success.

If you are interested in an Ayr Fort Players production for your venue, please contact the President  

Up to 2024 profits from their productions were donated to Cancer Research and, as of 2022, in excess of £60,000 has been handed over to this much deserved charity.  It was decided in 2025, due to producing The Girl on the Train, that we should donate to the South Ayrshire Women's Aid. 
   
It seems nothing can stop the Ayr Fort Players and that is partly due to loyal audiences coming out for an evening's entertainment, knowing they can bring the whole family and have a great night at the theatre.

PAST PRODUCTIONS

Click on the arrow for details of shows. 
If show has a live link then clicking on it will lead you to any images we have in our archives.