Aspiring actors will be getting tips about the highs and the lows of the profession at a series of workshops co-run by Full Monty actor Steve Huison.

The six-week course, which will be held on Saturdays, is the first workshop of its kind to be run by theatre group the Shoestring Foundation, in Shipley.

Designed to help potential actors expand their knowledge and experience, the workshops will take participants through subjects such as voice coaching and auditioning.

Shipley-based Steve, who has just returned from filming a British independent movie called Ana Begins, started his acting career at a youth theatre.

Ten years ago he landed his biggest role as Lomper in the Full Monty. But his life has not always been filled with acting work.

"In the last few years I have had to look for other work. I have worked with sheltered housing and I have had to pull pints; I have had to take all sorts of jobs. It's all good experience for acting though," he said.

It is this kind of advice that Steve will be imparting to workshop students when the course begins on Saturday, April 22.

Steve will tell students about auditioning techniques and how to work for film cameras.

"We are trying to encourage people, we are not trying to discourage, but I think that people need to know the realities of it," he said.

Students will hear Steve's top tips about making an impression during an audition.

Steve said an appearance at an audition could be the make or break factor in casting for a role.

At a screen test for a fisherman for a television advert Steve dressed in an old tweed jacket and grew a layer of stubble. He said he could tell the panel liked his look as soon as he entered the room.

"Often they cast you as soon as you walk through the door; it's about selling yourself," he said.

Alan Rogers, of the Shoestring Foundation, which has been running as a theatre company for three years, said he hoped the course would help people learn more about the hard work behind the glamour of acting.

"There are a lot of young people who want to go into it but they don't really know the realities," he said.

The workshop, which is being held at the Cellar Project in Shipley, is open to people aged 16 and over. To book a place, call 07899 772 903.