ONE of the region's leading actors has praised the drama skills of young inmates in a North-East institution.

Kevin Whately visited Deerbolt Young Offenders' Institute, in Startforth, near Barnard Castle, County Durham, yesterday to open a drama studio in memory of Sammy Johnson, a fellow Geordie actor.

After he was shown examples of some of the inmates' drama work, Mr Whately, the star of Auf Wiedersehen Pet and Inspector Morse, praised the work done in the class, run by Michael McNally.

The inmates screened footage of them reciting excerpts from Shakespeare's plays and also performed a live sketch written by one of the inmates.

Mr Whately, a former pupil of Barnard Castle School, said: "I really felt privileged to see that. I have been in a few prisons when I was filming Morse, I have never come across a class like this before.

"What I was impressed with was how naturally they moved. A lot of amateur actors can be quite wooden, I know I was, but these lads performed with real energy."

Mr McNally, a former actor and television presenter, has been running the course for 18 months. This year, he was given a former welding workshop to turn into a performance studio.

The studio has been named in memory of Sammy "Ronnie" Johnson, who was in Spender alongside North-East actor Jimmy Nail.

Mr Johnson died of a heart-attack in 1998 aged 50. As a young man, he spent time in prison, but transformed his life after playing in a band and becoming an actor.

Mr McNally said: "Ronnie was my closest friend. I think if he was alive today, he would be a big supporter of this.

"If anyone was an underdog, he would always want to give them a chance.

"The lads here have great pride in their work and one of them is the most natural actor I have ever seen."

Inmate Trevor Rippington, 19, said the course was one of the best in the institute.

He said: "It doesn't feel like you're in prison when you're taking part in this class, it's a kind of escape from it.

"It has helped me a lot with self-confidence. I know some lads who have been bullied and it helps them be a bit more confident and cope with prison life.

"It is not like other classes where you are in a classroom and they just tell you what to do. I just wish I had done it earlier. I get out in five weeks, I want to do a lot of things, but I would seriously think about acting when I get out.