THE mad, bad world of ‘elf and safety will be given a much needed shake-up in a satirical play later this month.

SAFE, directed by Arti Prashar, puts the spotlight on stringent regulations, asking when safeguarding turns into a restriction on our freedoms.

Performed by HotPots, a company of actors aged over 60, the play follows a group of elderly people attempting to put on a show against an onslaught of red tape.

An interruption by a health and safety officer throws a spanner in proceedings as he insists on box-ticking, safe-guarding and cotton-wooling the environment.

The exasperated actors take the audience along for the ride as they spiral into absurd and comical bureaucratic nonsense.

Written by Pete Lawson, the play asks whose voices are being sacrificed at the expense of safety.

Touring across London throughout October and November, SAFE will be at People Show in Pollard Road, Bethnal Green, on Saturday and The Space in Westferry Road, Docklands, next Friday, October 22.

For details visit the Spare Tyre theatre company website: www.sparetyre.org or call: 0207 061 6454.