THIS is the explosive moment that changed the course of history, as Guy Fawkes comes within seconds of blowing up Parliament.

A fuse leading to barrels of gunpowder burns as Fawkes squabbles with a co-conspirator in the cellars below the Houses of Parliament. 

The scene is part of ‘Guy Fawkes,’ a new comedy which opens this week at York Theatre Royal, just a short distance from Fawkes’ birthplace.

A theatre spokesman said Guy was a war weary man with a plan and a 'treasonous purpose; to restore a Catholic monarch to the English throne, whatever the cost.'

He said: "In the private room of an upmarket tavern, a clandestine meeting takes place between this dark dissident, a Poundshop Machiavelli, a portly boob, a clumsy princess, a preposterous toff and a shoddy ham.

"Together, this group of misfits set the first sparks of rebellion that will flare up to become the most audacious crime ever attempted on British soil. But will things go to plan? It’s…unlikely.

"Facing bickering, backstabbing and ineptitude at every turn, poor Guy quickly realises the impossibility of the task that has been assigned to him and, as things begin to unravel, he starts to lose the plot."

Guy Fawkes starts tomorrow and runs until Saturday Novemnber 12.

For more information, go to https://www.yorktheatreroyal.co.uk/show/guy-fawkes/.