Lord Archer gave his backing to the stage adaptation

The first volume of the disgraced Tory peer's diary from his time in Belmarsh Prison provided the inspiration for Jeffrey Archer's Prison Diary Hell.

Lord Archer was released in 2003 after serving half of his four-year sentence for perjury.

The play had its world premiere at the Underbelly venue on Thursday and will run until 29 August.

Suicide

Lord Archer has given his backing to the play, which is written and directed by James Rayment.

The whole story features four actors - led by Andrew MacBean in the role of Lord Archer - with the others playing a number of different characters in the prison.

It charts his spectacular fall from grace as Lord Archer faces the grim realities of life inside the high security prison, where he spent the first three weeks of his sentence.

The book includes a section detailing when the former Conservative Party deputy chairman considered committing suicide with a razor blade, and compares British jail conditions to those of Turkey and Kosovo.

Lord Archer was convicted of perjury for lying during his successful 1987 libel trial against the Daily Star. He was sent to jail in July 2001.