Kids aren’t always known for their enthusiasm at school, but a group of students in Chalk Farm loved reading To Kill A Mockingbird so much they performed the story on stage.

Year Nine teenagers, aged 13 and 14, at Haverstock School in Haverstock Hill, Chalk Farm, and local pensioners starred in the one-night-only production on Wednesday to a full auditorium packed with parents and other students.

The group began reading the classic Harper Lee story as part of an after-school club organised by the vice chair of governors, Jim Mulligan.

When Mr Mulligan asked pupils to put on voices as they read, he got an idea for a stage version of the book and wrote a script based on pupils’ reactions to the themes of racism and bigotry central to the novel.

The students rehearsed for nearly six months in the run-up to the performance, called It’s a Sin to Shoot a Mockingbird, to better understand the characters they were portraying.

Headteacher John Dowd said: “The students worked hard on it and it was a very polished performance. They really got under the characters’ skin and understood the themes.”