NO show has deserved a return to York Theatre Royal more than Paul Allen’s stage adaptation of Brassed Off.

Ten years ago, it was staged by artistic director Damian Cruden to mark the 20th anniversary of the 1984 miners’ strike. Now Cruden is directing it once more, on the strike’s 30th anniversary, this time in a touring co-production with the Touring Consortium Theatre Company and the Bolton Octagon.

Not only has Cruden returned to the brass band play based on York writer-director Mark Herman’s film but so too have actors Luke Adamson and Andrew Dunn, playing narrator Shane and his troubled, trombone-playing father, Phil, in the story of Grimley Collliery facing closure in 1992.

“I was 15 and doing my GCSEs at Brayton,” says Luke. “I was in the Theatre Royal Youth Theatre at the time and had already done four Theatre Royal pantos as a wee bairn, and had auditioned for the part of Bert in All My Sons too.

“When Brassed Off came round, I was on my holidays when I got a phone call from Jill Adamson – no relation by the way – who ran the youth theatre and said ‘Would you like to do the narrator’s role?’.”

At 15, Luke required a chaperone.

“I think I probably shouldn’t have been allowed to do every show so, for the record, it was my twin brother with the same name that shared the role,” he says.

“I don’t think at the time I realised how moving a piece it was because I was being given such a big opportunity and was just so keen to do the best I could in the show. It wasn’t until we got the response from the audience each show that I realised it was so special.”

Andrew, who had starred in Victoria Wood’s works canteen comedy dinnerladies, recalls the 2004 production of Brassed Off, below, with equal affection.

“It was great fun to be in it, mainly because of the experience of the audience, and just starting the rehearsals again has brought the memories flooding back,” he says.

“As a role, Phil is very enjoyable to play because it’s a very episodic play, which means a lot is happening with fast changes of costume and getting the brass band on and off. Last time, of course, I did it with my partner, Andrina Carroll, and my son, Elliott, who was nine at the time.

“Phil has four children; Elliott played Craig, and it felt quite odd as we had to bring him in each night and he wasn’t used to acting, so he’d say, ‘I’m not doing it again, am I?’. One time on stage, he even said ‘I’m bored’, so obviously he didn’t really want to be an actor.”

So why was Elliott in the show?

“When Andrina was chosen for a part after me, they said to us, ‘You might need to arrange some child care’, so it made sense for Elliott to be in it too,” says Andrew.

Ten years on, the impact of Brassed Off will be stronger than ever. “The emotions are even more raw now because of the release of the Government papers from 30 years ago,” says Luke.

“When a relative of one of the cast, who was from a mining community, came in for an informal chat around the table, he was asked ‘how long had the bitterness lasted?’ and he said, ‘It’s still there. Families haven’t talked for years’,” says Andrew.

Now 25, how will Luke play young Shane this time?

“Shane is meant to be eight in the play, but because the audience and community has moved on, so Shane has moved on and he’s not this optimistic kid any more,” he says. “Instead, he’s a more mature Shane, returning to something that was a massive part of his life.

“Shane is now embodying how a lot of the country is feeling once again.”

• Brassed Off runs at York Theatre Royal from February 14 to March 1. Box office: 01904 623568 or yorktheatreroyal.co.uk