Everybody may think that Jesus turned water into wine but a new show exploring the greatest drinkers of all time is about to turn that famous story on its head.

Award-winning drinks experts Ben McFarland and Tom Sandham will be bringing their sell-out Edinburgh Fringe Festival show, The Thinking Drinkers’ Guide to the Legends of Liquor to town next month.

McFarland and Sandham, the Thinking Drinkers, will be exploring the liquid lives of history’s most extraordinary elbow-benders and aim to take audience members on an imbibing adventure looking at the who’s-who of hooch.

Speaking to the Epsom Guardian, Sandham says: "Ben and I have been drinks writers for 10 years.

"We joined forces to write a book about American beer - we spent time travelling round the West Coast writing about the beer scene over there.

"After that trip where we spent all our time together, we realised we could probably work together under any circumstances.

"We set up a business and website and carried on with the books and started talking at events such as Taste of London.

"People were surprised that the talks were fun and different from traditional wine tastings.

"That’s when we thought, maybe there is something in this.

"We went to the Edinburgh Fringe about four years ago and took the concept of tasting and turned it into a piece of theatre on the history of alcohol.

"We weren’t actors or comedians and it was a bit of a strange move for us to go from tastings to performing at Edinburgh.

"It grew year on year and we decided to take it on tour in the South East."

In the show, Sandham and McFarland will discuss the drinking habits of famous figures including Alexander the Great, Winston Churchill, Humphrey Bogart, Dorothy Parker, Andre the Giant and Jesus Christ; give people interesting facts about their lives and let audience members have a taste of their respective drinks of choice for themselves.

"We are drinks experts, we tell some jokes but we keep people interested by giving out free luxury spirits and beers," Sandham says.

"It’s a completely new show which we ran at the Edinburgh Fringe this year.

"This show is all about people - the greatest drinkers who have ever lived, not the biggest boozers.

"We go through our top eight, finishing with the greatest drinker of all time.

"As we go through them we taste their favourite drinks, for example, gin, American whisky.

"We talk about the people and what they achieved.

"It’s an eclectic mix - Jesus and Humphrey Bogart certainly were very different characters.

"Jesus was famous for turning water into wine but we reveal that in the original Hebrew scriptures he would have turned it into a strong alcoholic drink more likely to be beer than wine.

"As well as a jokey show, there are facts based on lots of research. We spent hours in the British Library researching.

"The show’s a bit of a laugh, you get free drinks and you learn something.

"I think that’s why people enjoy it."

With their catchphrase Drink Less and Drink Better, the show, directed by Malachi Bogdanov, will celebrate the men and women who have used alcohol to ignite ideas rather than who have given drink its negative reputation.

McFarland and Sandham write for a number of leading titles including Jamie Oliver Magazine, Time Out and the Daily Telegraph.

They co-authored their book, Thinking Drinkers: Enlightened Imbibers Guide to Alcohol, this year.

The Thinking Drinkers’ Guide to the Legends of Liquor; Epsom Playhouse, Ashley Avenue, Epsom; November 6, 7.30pm; £17; call 01372 742555; visit www.epsomplayhouse.co.uk.