Three Bermuda pals who are well-known on the Island art scene are having a reunion with a difference ? staging a play on a tiny island off the south coast of England.

Former residents Derek Corlett, his wife Carolyn and current expatriate Nancy Thompson, who were and are members of the Bermuda Musical and Dramatic Society, will meet again in a production on the Isle of Wight this week.

A fourth former Bermuda resident, Helen Coffey, was due to take part but ironically suffered a nasty leg injury at the weekend and is unable to make the three-day show starting tonight.

Derek, who lived on the Island from 1986 to 2001, will be directing ?Swell? and said the show will be the first time the friends had performed together, despite them all being involved in various arts groups whilst in Bermuda.

?We decided to do this as an experiment really, we all know each other very well and talked one day about whether it was a feasible project to undertake,? said Derek.

?We are all very excited about it, it is a great piece and well written. Plus it is a great chance for us all to meet up again and talk about the fun we had in Bermuda.?

?It?s funny but although we knew each other and have done shows together, all four of us were never in one show together until now.?

Derek met and married Carolyn, a successful artist, whilst in Bermuda. He worked in maintenance for the Reefs Hotel and also PW?s where he looked after the equipment at their gas stations.

He was active with BMDS and the Gilbert and Sullivan Society as an actor, a highlight being a role in the society?s production of Les Miserables, but is probably better known for his directing skills.

Derek directed the farce ?Noises Off?, ?Hot Mikado? and in 2002 was invited back to the Island to take charge of the BMDS Christmas musical, ?Scrooge?, at City Hall.

As the only current Bermuda resident, Nancy Thompson is active with BMDS and the G&S society. She was also a member of the Jabulani Theatre Company and has played roles in ?Guys and Dolls?, ?Little Shop of Horrors? and ?Assassins?. After her Isle of Wight performance she is due to take part in Stephen Sondheims ?Into the Woods? in Bermuda.

The pals are all looking forward to the show, though Derek said they are disappointed that Helen Coffey won?t be able to join them. Isle of Wight resident Kay Fawcett, who appeared in the US soap ?Guiding Light? as an English maid, will play her role.

?Helen had a terrible slip and badly torn the ligaments in her ankle, she had an x-ray yesterday which has revealed a chipped bone as well. We are all devastated but we are lucky that Kay has agreed to step in at the last minute as we don?t think Helen is capable of making the performance,? said Derek.

Carolyn Corlett, nee Finch, was active in Bermuda in opera, repertory and musical theatre. She played Darlene in ?Do not Disturb?, Nurse Wilson in a ?Month of Sundays? and April in ?Company?. The couple now have two daughters and after ?Swell? she will be touring the Isle of Wight in ?The Secret Lives of Henry and Alice?.