Have you ever had a chance meeting with a stranger and found that you had more in common than you first thought? Maybe you met them again? And was it a big mistake? Or did it change your life?

These are a few of the questions asked in York playwright and actor Paul Osborne’s new play The Bluest Blue, whose premiere at Manchester’s 24:7 Theatre Festival will be followed by a run on home soil next month.

“The play is a comic and compelling tale of loss and desire, which starts outside the Minster and stretches from the tourist traps of York to a Barnsley council estate after a young bookseller is tackled by a predatory traffic warden. A street cleaner has to sweep up the pieces, but is the ticket-toting enforcer really who she says she is?” says Paul.

He has developed his debut play from a short scene penned for a Script Factor evening of new writing at York Theatre Royal last November. “I wanted to write a funny play that explored what happens when you take the time to talk to a stranger that you usually ignore; why conversation is important; and how people can change when they’re on unfamiliar territory – as well as portraying some of the good and bad things about living in York,” he says.

Paul Stonehouse is directing York company Old Bomb Theatre’s cast of Hannah Dee, Alan Booty and Tom Gladstone, while Clare Rawsterne, from Salford, is the stage manager for the show. “I went to the 24:7 Festival Big Gathering in May where the writers get to meet local actors, directors and others who want to participate,” she says. “Paul’s cast all live in York and he wanted to have someone from Manchester on the team, so he sent me the script and asked me to get involved.”

Assessing the play, Clare says: “I think it has little bit of everything: humour, drama, love, pain. What struck me most about the piece is the way it deals with human interaction. It raises questions about stereotyping and how quick we can be to judge others, and it also deals with the issue of our everyday ‘acting’ and the effect this can have.”

The Bluest Blue can be seen at New Century House, Manchester, until Sunday and at the 41 Monkgate Theatre, York, on August 5 at 9pm, August 6, 8pm, and August 7, 6pm and 8pm. Tickets: Manchester, 247theatrefestival.co.uk; York, yorktheatreroyal.co.uk or 01904 623568.

• The Bluest Blue can be seen at New Century House, Manchester, from Monday until Sunday and at the 41 Monkgate Theatre, York, on August 5 at 9pm, August 6, 8pm, and August 7, 6pm and 8pm. Tickets: Manchester, 247theatrefestival.co.uk; York, yorktheatreroyal.co.uk or 01904 623568.