LIKE an oyster, the outer shell of Richmond's Georgian Theatre Royal disguises the treasure within.

Plasterwork is falling away in lumps from the extension built in the 1960s, leaving the bare bricks visible beneath.

From the outside, the building looks more like a barn than the only surviving authentic Georgian playhouse in the UK, sitting close to the heart of the North Yorkshire town.

But then there are the pearls inside - and among a dedicated team hoping to preserve more of them is 78-year-old manager Bill Sellars.

Ask him and he will show you a tiny auditorium where it is easy to go back 200 years to a time when 400 people used to cram wooden benches, laughing and jeering at political satire or gripped by Shakespearean drama.

There is the stage where actors tread boards which date back to the 18th Century - even the original dressing rooms and mechanical devices for dramatic stage effects still survive.

Mr Sellars is among those who hope the building's heyday is in the future and not the past.

He wants the theatre to become not just a playhouse with an interesting history, but a living museum where cast, crew and audience are part of an experience which cannot be duplicated anywhere else.

"It is an important asset which must be cherished," he said. "We have to get young people interested because they are the future and there isn't going to be one here if we have something which looks like a warehouse where there's nothing going on."

Some of the hard work has already been done.

The Heritage Lottery Fund has been persuaded to earmark £575,000 for a restoration programme, with international bankers Brown Shipley pledging a further £100,000 towards a target of £1m.

But not everyone shares the vision and, in particular, designs for a new facade overlooking Richmond's Victoria Road have run into resistance.

The idea is to pull down the crumbling 1960s' annex, replacing it with a glass-fronted coffee lounge and bar, allowing passers-by a glimpse of the original external wall encased inside.

Mr Sellars said yesterday: "We hope that the theatre will look alive and more vibrant - it is the only one of its kind in the UK, and an important stop on Richmond's tourist trail.

"However, history alone may not be enough, and we have to do something to entice people to visit."

The final say rests with planners and councillors, who are expected to debate the project within weeks.

If it is accepted, work could begin early in the New Year, with the town's old Zetland Cinema hosting plays for 12 months while restoration is under way.

If not, then any protracted delay could put Lottery funding in jeopardy.

Whatever the outcome, Mr Sellars admitted he is eyeing the retirement he promised himself a decade ago.

"If this works, I think I'll have to pack my bags and move to Spain,'' he said with a smile.

"When a restoration is over, it will be time for someone else to take over, but I just know, if I'm still around, I'll be in and out every day, getting under everyone's feet."