THE story of six jobless Sheffield steel workers who shed their clothes, along with their troubles, to raise some cash by going the full monty was an instant classic when it hit screens in the Nineties.

If anything, the Full Monty packs even more of a punch in Simon Beaufoy’s stage adaptation of his original screenplay, which is at the Cliffs all this week.

The two-act format gives Simon the chance to develop characters and explore their stories in more detail, so as it all comes together in the second act, you’re well behind the group of misfits.

Interlacing laugh-out-loud hilarity and darker themes, a tragi-comic suicide attempt results in the beginnings of the unlikely strip troupe – and sets the tone for the rest of the show.

The excellent cast is led by the utterly convincing Kenny Doughty as Gaz. He’s the cheeky charmer facing up to a new world where jobs aren’t for life, and once secure industries are failing, while Robert Jones’s astonishing design sees the set seamlessly morph from abandoned steelworks to working man’s club, a job centre and the much-loathed local Conservative club.

The fact we’re back in times of financial hardship, with soaring unemployment and failing industries, makes the play particularly relevant today.

The developed characters really allow the cast to weave their way into your heart as they face up to the crushing effects of unemployment, depression, homophobia, illness and crumbling marriages.

There are painfully desperate moments, like when Gaz and best pal Dave (Roger Morlidge) realise the full effect of costing their old foreman Gerald (Simon Rouse) a new job after sabotaging his interview as a prank. Then there’s the moment chubby Dave secretly wraps himself in clingfilm in a desperate bid to lose weight and gain enough confidence to join his pals.

But it’s not all gritty northern drama. There are laughs aplenty as well, and the audience was roaring hysterically for much of the show.

Ultimately, it’s the story of six men who discover that life and dignity isn’t about your salary, but about relationships, friendship and community.

We laughed as they uncomfortably took their clothes off for the first time, but we loved them for shedding the layers of spirit-sapping failure, and cheered ecstatically at the final revelation. And, yes, they do indeed go the full monty.

The Full Monty is at the Cliffs Pavilion until Saturday. Call 01702 351135 for tickets.