An improvisation theatre troupe will use the Surrey Comet newspaper for inspiration, at a fundraising performance on Sunday, March 7.

Rose Theatre employee Rachel Denyer, 27, organised the event there to raise money for Endometriosis UK, in the build-up a national awareness week for the illness, on March 8 to 14.

Award-winning comedy group The Maydays will perform their hit show Tonight’s Top Story in the Culture Cafe, and 100 per cent of ticket sales will go to Miss Denyer’s selected charity.

Audience members will be invited to bring in stories from the Surrey Comet newspaper to use in making up songs and sketches, with each one improvised on the spot when the stories are picked out of a hat.

Miss Denyer has suffered with the illness since she was 17 but it took years for doctors to finally diagnose her.

Endometriosis is a condition in which small pieces of womb lining are found outside the womb.

In Miss Denyer’s case, it has meant her swapping jobs at the Rose Theatre to allow her to work from home.

She said: “I would get into work and have to be propped up at my desk where I was in so much pain. I was told having children might be a problem but I thought ‘I really don’t care because my life is so unbearable’.

“I was suicidal because my quality of life was so bad and everything was secondary to that.”

Diagnosis is very slow as the symptoms are so varied - from period pain and constipation to headaches and pain during sex.

Miss Denyer said: “The treatment now is still the same as it was when my mum was being treated in the 70s.There’s a real lack of awareness and it is something that could be cured if enough money went into researching it.”

For tickets to the performance, sponsored by The Maydays, New Victoria Hospital, Kingston, and Impress Print Services, Hersham, visit wegottickets.com.

Call 0808 8082227 or visit endometriosis-uk.org for help or support.