BEING the only female in an all-male cast could either have been a lot of fun or a little lonely.

Fortunately for Joanne Mitchell, it's worked out as being a bit of a laugh.

"It's great," the Hebden Bridge actress enthused of her role as Valerie in Conor McPherson's The Weir, which runs at Bolton's Octagon Theatre from next Thursday.

"We all get on really well and there's a lot of laughs. There could have been a danger of being left out because I'm the only female, but it's a really warm company and there's a lot of camaraderie."

The camaraderie between the cast certainly helps set the scene in The Weir, which takes place in a pub in a remote part of Ireland.

Joanne said: "If anyone's ever been to an Irish pub, they'll recognise the atmosphere straight away.

"There's the lads and the laughter and the banter, but there's also lots of twists and turns and the atmosphere becomes more ominous.

"The audience gets drawn into the characters and the conflicts between them."

These conflicts are pushed to the fore with the arrival of Valerie on the scene, an attractive young woman from Dublin.

Joanne said: "My character's very enigmatic and she's brought a lot of baggage with her.

"Nobody knows anything about her, but she starts to reveal her secrets later on."

During rehearsals Joanne came to admire the skill of playwright Conor McPherson.

She said: "The way he writes is amazing, really. It works on so many different levels. He's also very precise with the way he writes. It's like a piece of music -- there's a real rhythm to it."

Joanne herself only moved to Hebden Bridge, from London, earlier this year when she got married. She has already won parts in two Northern-based soaps -- Emmerdale and Hollyoaks -- to add to the diverse range of roles she has already played.

She said: "I'm very lucky, because I've played a lot of interesting parts. I've played the lead in Hedda Gabler and a nasty reporter in Bad Girls.

"I love acting because I'm interested in human beings and what makes them tick. The theatre has always been my first love, but I wouldn't mind doing more telly in the future."

Catch The Weir at Bolton Octagon from October 30 to November 22. Call (01204) 520661 for tickets.