KENNETH Grahame’s Wind in the Willows (1908) and TS Eliot’s The Waste Land (1922), written only 14 years apart, demonstrate how British society was dramatically altered by the First World War.

Gone is the stability of the comfortable and gentlemanly society of Edwardian England with its focus on the countryside, and in its place is the uncertainty of a broken city-scape and fragmented lives.

Alton Fringe Theatre is presenting both world views this spring. There will be performances of The Wind in the Willows in a new adaptation by Simon Applegarth with music by Jo Foulkes (both members of the Fringe) from April 21-23, and dramatic readings of The Waste Land in three Hampshire libraries – Alton (May 4), Petersfield (May 12), and Winchester (June 4).

The Waste Land is directed by Jo Hopkins and tickets, priced £7, are available from the three county libraries or online at hants.gov.uk/shop.

The five actors will give voice to the many characters, ideas and sounds of the poem, drawing out its themes of life and death, hope and despair, memory and desire.

The Fringe’s production of The Wind in the Willows, directed by Louise Dilloway, takes the children’s tale into an adult world where residents of The Riverside Care Home revisit the story.

To take place at Amery Hill School’s drama rtudio, the production delivers the rich characters of Grahame’s novel with its focus on loyalty and love of the British countryside in all its seasons. The comfort of the riverside residents may be threatened with upheaval and destruction but their world is steadied and by the end all is well.

This gently nostalgic, romantic view of life is enhanced in the production by using puppets and digital images which are presented alongside the actors and musicians to create the richness of Grahame’s landscapes.

Tickets for Wind in the Willows are available from Waterstone’s book shop on Alton High Street priced £10 for adults, £8 for under-18s.

Evening performances are at 7.30pm on April 21-23, with a Saturday matinee at 2.30pm.