IT can be a hard task to find activities for all members of the family to enjoy in equal measure, let alone a family-of-six with an age ranging from seven to 45.

But for one unlikely County Durham family, signing up as volunteers for Bishop Auckland’s epic open-air show Kynren has transformed their lives and brought them together.

The Kinsey family, of Cockfield, near Bishop Auckland, is made up of mum Brigit, 43, dad Paul, 45, and their children Joe, 17, Jake, 15, and seven-year-old twins Livvy and Nina.

They each play a part in the live action night show - chronicling 2,000 years of history - and have generously given up their time over the last year to prepare.

“Our motivation when we first started was to bring something to our local area - the opportunity it brings for the children, bringing business and economic revival the area - and to be part of this amazing spectacle,” said Mrs Kinsey, deputy head at St Wilfrid’s RCVA Primary School in the town.

“But now it’s different and very selfish because every single person on the site has this shared vision - it’s like being in some sort of Disney camp where everybody is so happy.”

The Kinsey clan first heard of the project just over a year ago after buying tickets for Puy du Fou - the France-based show on which Kynren is based.

Mrs Kinsey added: “When we went to see it we knew it was coming which put a whole new slant on it. It was tear-jerking and as soon as we came back we instantly signed up thinking ‘we want to be a part of that’.”

With “zero” experience in the world of the arts, save for Jake and Joe who study drama at school, the family were straight into workshops and were soon allocated ‘teams’.

Pharmaceuticals technical expert Mr Kinsey and his two sons were assigned to the eight-strong combat team which required learning specialist skills such as dancing, sword-fighting and diving, which are all incorporated into scenes similar to those played out in France.

“We were just so blown away by what we saw at Puy du Fou and to think that we’re actually doing that now one year later is mindboggling,” added Mr Kinsey.

Among the roles for the combat team are William the Conqueror, Gladiators, Vikings and Normans.

Meanwhile Mrs Kinsey and her daughters were assigned to the children’s team where they play villagers, pages and flag-wavers.

“One of the big things for us is coming in as a whole family,” she added. “We talk about it all the time but with very different experiences.

“It’s like the family that Kynrens together stays together - it’s been glue and we’ve got a common ground between us. We are so proud to be a part of it.”

There will be 14 shows throughout the summer starting on Saturday.