PENNILESS and desperate to become an actress after studying at Goldsmiths and the Arts Educational Schools in London, Hannah Chalmers entered the world of the sleasy strip club as an innocent novice for six months in search of a financial lifeline.

Fortunately for her, the result was the one woman show Stripped, a hit at the recent Edinburgh Fringe Festival, which tours to Darlington Arts Centre next Friday, October 29.

Having been brave enough to take a comic look at a secret side to her life, Chalmers admits that initial reaction to her show at Edinburgh still came as a shock: “I would hand out a flyer to a woman and she’d take one look at the picture and title and say ‘Oh no that’s not for me’. I’d then have to explain that this was a character comedy, definitely not just for men because there’s nothing sexual about it. This is showing what life is like through the characters,” she says.

On her reasons for dabbling in lap and pole dancing for real, Chalmers explains: “I’d left drama school a few months before and didn’t have the money to spend on my acting career because everything went on my rent. So I worked out I had to find a job which earned good money in a short space of time. I did if for about six months and it was good money but during the summer I decided to try a different club in Central London where I found it was cut-throat, competitive and lots of bitchiness. I couldn’t handle that at all and looked for something else.”

She admits that she emerged from the experience as a much harder and unemotional person.

“A lot of the characters are based on real people. But I doubt my show would inspire people to go and work as a stripper. It kind of shows the pros and cons, but does highlight the absurdity of the whole scene,” she explains about what happened three years ago.

Chalmers says (“Don’t tell mum”) in her programme notes, although she confesses that her mum is now aware of what happened and has seen the show a couple of times.

“The first time she saw Stripped she said she went through every emotion, but my parents and family have all been very supportive. But I didn’t tell them anything at the time and made out I was doing a temporary job.”

■ Stripped, Darlington Arts Centre, October 29, 8pm. Tickets: £10.50. Box Office: 01325-486-555 darlingtonarts.co.uk (recommended age 16+)