HANG on to your coconuts... King Arthur and his mighty band are riding into Wantage.

AmEgos Theatre are putting on the hilarious and beloved musical SPAMALOT from Wednesday, November 29, until Saturday, December 2.

Written by Eric Idle, the show is lovingly ripped off from the hugely-successful 1975 Monty Python and the Holy Grail: it features a band of misfit knights, dancing nuns, fearsome Frenchmen and a killer rabbit.

The story follows King Arthur as he travels on a divine mission to find the holy grail.

Helping him on his quest are the Lady of the Lake and his faithful servant Patsy.

Spamalot has had great success since it premiered on Broadway in 2005, winning three Tony awards and receiving seven Olivier nominations when it opened in London.

The show has attracted many high-profile performers with Arthur being played by Phil Jupitus, Joe Pasquale and Sanjeev Bhaskar amongst others, with Bonnie Langford and Jodie Prenger channelling the Lady of the Lake.

Guest actors including Barbara Windsor, Michael Ball and Gary Lineker have all played the voice of God.

If you’re a Python fan, the show makes many references to the Holy Grail film and other Python offerings including a line from The Lumberjack Song, nods to Ministry of Silly Walks, and the dead parrot sketch and the ever-popular Always Look on the Bright Side of Life from the Life of Brian (1979).

Musical theatre fans, meanwhile, will appreciate its references to other musicals such as The Song That Goes Like This, which spoofs Andrew Lloyd Webber productions and other Broadway ballads.

The knights also do dances reminiscent of Fiddler on the Roof and West Side Story and there is a line pulled from Another Hundred People from Stephen Sondheim's Company.

AmEgos, founded in Wantage, in now in its fifth year, producing Spamalot as its 12th show.

Unlike many amateur societies, there is no fixed membership or committee as they prefer to work as a collective using the talents, skills and passions of each individual in the show.

More than 50 local thespians have now taken part in various AmEgos shows, playing to more than 3,000 people.

The group have also worked closely with local organisations such as Oxfordshire Drama Wardrobe and Wantage Orchestra, built links with local businesses who support the shows with donations, and have won grant funding from Wantage Town Council and Wantage Waitrose.

For Spamalot, AmEgos welcomes three new performers and features two pairs of mothers and daughters, one father and son and a pair of sisters.

Performers in the show live across the county from Upton to Longcot.

Nick Coard, who lives in Faringdon, has taken on the job of directing the show, having previously sung the lead roles of Max Bialystock in The Producers, Sid Sorokin in The Pajama Game and the title role in Sweeney Todd the Demon Barber of Fleet Street.

Nick says: "It’s a daunting task, taking on such a huge, iconic and beloved show, but it’s been a dream of mine to direct a big musical, and here I am!

"I’m lucky that AmEgos has many talented individuals who can create stunning sets, procure props and wardrobe, and choreograph amazing dance routines – that certainly takes some of the pressure off me.

"It absolutely amazes me that this bunch of ordinary people, most of whom hold down busy day jobs, will still give up so many hours of their time to come to rehearsals and are prepared to do some pretty silly things on stage, all in the name of entertainment.

"There’s no doubt that Spamalot is clever, witty and silly and I hope that the audiences in Wantage will come down, bang their coconuts and sing along to Always Look on the Bright Side of Life."

Spamalot runs for five shows from Wednesday, November 29, to Saturday, December 2, at King Alfred’s Academy, Portway, Wantage.

Curtain up 7.30pm nightly with a matinee at 2.30pm on Saturday.

Tickets are available from wegottickets.com/AmEgos and you can get more information from AmEgosTheatre.com

No cows or rabbits have been hurt in the making of this show.