A BREXIT play without the politics is the intriguing premise for a new production at The Met in Bury by local playwright Lewis Charlesworth.

"It's a comedy drama about ordinary, northern, working class people set in 2015 when everyone was talking about all the issues surrounding the referendum," explained Lewis, 34, who lives in Ramsbottom.

"It was a time when there were lots of tensions, and the play's about all those thoughts and feelings leading up to the referendum, rooted in relatable characters."

The Greek features a cast of three. 78-year-old Oldham actress Betty Webster plays the lead role of Mary, a cantankerous old lady with a big heart.

Her grandson, James, is played by Lewis, and Peter Slater plays middle-aged John, a very patriotic traditionalist who lives next door to Mary.

"It's a combination of what was going on culturally and socially combined with my experiences of being a mixed-race kid growing up in Bolton and my relationship with my own grandmother. She was a very complex character who would say certain things that you wouldn't agree with but you still loved her.

"The play's about not judging people for their views. Just because they have a certain opinion it doesn't mean they're a horrible person. It's an optimistic story in that it highlights, through humour, our shared humanity rather than focusing on differences.

"Political events are never explicitly referred to, nor is the referendum. That was deliberate because it would have dated the play and I wanted to keep it universal and timeless."

As Lewis had a lot of ideas already flying around inside his head, it only took him a month to write the play.

"I can't reveal why it's called The Greek because that would give away the plot. Suffice it to say it has a thematic significance which will make sense when people see the play."

It is Lewis's second play. His first, titled Cheaters, was a sex farce about adultery and was a hit when it debuted at The Met last year. Among the impressed audiences was Jim Cartwight, the award-winning author of Two and The Rise and Fall of Little Voice.

Despite holding down a day job as a copywriter for a Manchester accountancy training company, Lewis has already written a third play, titled Blind Fate, is exploring an idea for a web series and still does occasional stints as a stand-up comedian.

You can see The Greek at 7.30pm tonight and next Thursday.