JAMES FLEET tells me he loves to "poke the stick" at what it means to be British and his latest role allows him to do just that.

The 54-year-old actor is most famous for his portrayals of the bumbling, but well-meaning Tom in the 1994 hit film Four Weddings And A Funeral, as well as the dim-witted Hugo Horton in the BBC's Vicar Of Dibley.

Now James is treading the boards as a hapless MEP in Richard Bean's new comedy, In The Club, which arrives in High Wycombe later this month.

"I think the play is really funny," James enthuses. "It's that kind of sense of humour that is very much the writer's.

"He pokes the stick right into the cage of what you think Britishness is and what British people would think or do. I love plays like that."

He adds: "I particularly like all those non-verbal commands we do: the nod, a shrug, or all those other idiosyncratic things that are very much part of our Englishness."

Described as "a cheeky, non-stop and riotous laugh-out-loud romp", the play revolves around MEP Philip Wardrobe (James Fleet) and his struggle to balance his less-than-irreproachable political career with his attempts to start a family.

Philip's ambition to become President of the European Parliament appears to be foiled at every turn by a band of unpredictable colleagues, including uncouth Yorkshiremen, irate Turks and amorous Frenchwomen, as well as a mysterious man in the linen cupboard.

As if things are not complicated enough, his girlfriend, who is desperate to have a baby, then arrives at his posh Strasbourg hotel suite, intent on having an amorous afternoon.

James stars alongside Huw Higginson (known for his role as George Garfield in The Bill) and Carla Mendonca (My Parents Are Aliens).

"It has all the elements of a farce with plenty of doors opening and closing all the time," James tells me.

"My character, Philip, is up to dodgy things, like claiming 80,000 Euros a year for his mother to run his office and he's taking bribes from the Turks. It's all about the underside of European politics.

"But I think the real story is about Philip and his girlfriend. They are both professionals and have left it a bit late to have children.

"I don't think the audience will really care about his dodgy politics, but will care far more about his relationship."

James is no stranger to the stage, having built up an impressive portfolio of theatre work in the three decades since he graduated from the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama.

His most recent work includes Cloud Nine at the Almeida Theatre in London and the touring production, Habeas Corpus.

James, who was born in Wolverhampton, is equally well-known for his film and television work, which includes Midsomer Murders, Sea of Souls and Monarch of the Glen, as well as the role of Lefevre in Phantom of the Opera (2004) and as James Dashwood in Sense and Sensibility (1995).

But for now, the talented actor, who lives in the Cotswolds with his wife, Carol, and their two sons, tells me he is relishing his time on the stage.

"When you do it every night, you let the character grow and like a leather jacket, it comes to fit you. I think there's something quite comforting in that."

In The Club arrives at Wycombe Swan from Monday, February 25 to Saturday, March 1. Details: 01494 512000