Given that our summer weather hasn't been quite as dry as we might have liked so far, here are a few ideas that could transform a wet time stuck inside a car into a treat for all generations ...

Would-be William Shakespeares, Harold Pinters and Agatha Christies will be thrilled to learn that their budding talents could be unlocked this August at Watford Palace Theatre's brand new playwriting workshop programme called 'Off the Page'. This will present a unique opportunity for new playwrights to develop their skills and receive feedback about their writing.

"Hangover Square" is a play about the darkest hours before the outbreak of WW2, and it's going to be performed at last performed in its natural home - at Earls Court’s Finborough Theatre, from July 9th 2008 for a four-week run.

Paulton Amateur Dramatic society (PADS) in Somerset are busy in their theatre workshop, rehearsing and putting together their next production, which promises to match if not exceed their previous high standards. This is a play adapted by Paul Doust from the novel, "Cold Comfort Farm" by Stella Gibbons.

The enormously popular Chatsworth Country Fair – one of England’s most spectacular outdoor events - is on for the 27th year in 2008 with gardening favourite Alan Titchmarsh presiding over this colourful celebration of country life.

With weather predictions ranging from heat waves to tropical storms and floods this summer, choosing a home-grown holiday destination may seem a little risky. So if all else fails, why not discover some of the more unusual attractions hidden away around the UK - from egg-throwing and railways to Shakespeare and Edwardian Theatre...?

 The Royal Academy of Arts will be holding a haunting exhibition this June called "The Poetry of Silence", featuring work by the first Vilhelm Hammershøi (1864-1916) selected from museums and private collections in Europe, the United States and Japan.