THE final offerings in NFP's week of 80th birthday celebrations proved to be well worth waiting for, and further served to prove what a huge amount of talent there is in this group.

Gillian Pitt directed the first play, a most unusual piece set around a young Jewish boy, Moses, who has been abandoned by his family, and an Arab shopkeeper who befriends and subsequently adopts him.

Both characters were sensitively and touchingly played by James Cole and PJ Stevens, creating a genuine sense of closeness that was heart-warming to watch.

Fresh Oysters was another play new to me, and it held me enthralled from start to finish.

This quirky comedy, well directed by Sonia Collyer, was set in 1970s Moscow amid the meeting of Londoner Charles Radcliffe and American Samantha Wise, both of whom have somewhat unusual reasons for visiting Chekhov's grave and resulting in one of them almost landing in prison.

There were superb performances from Matthew Ellison and Barbara Evans, the latter producing and sustaining a highly impressive American accent, while John James showed his versatility - and possible aptitude for ballet, judging by his Nutcracker! -in a variety of small roles.