Norfolk actor Matt Long has launched a petition to see train companies give actors cheaper fares. And our readers had a lot to say about it.

MORE: Norfolk actor launches petition to see train companies give actors cheaper faresWe had a range of comments across Facebook and Twitter in response to the article, which discusses how Mr Long wants actors to receive the same discounts as students so they can easily travel to auditions without paying excessive train fares.

Here are just a handful of the responses:

Paul Andrew Goldsmith said: 'Utterly ridiculous...and that comes from an actual working actor.'

Nicole Browns said: 'If this was to lower rail prices for everyone I could understand but for actors? This is the most ridiculous thing I've seen this year. There's other things we should be more concerned about instead of whether an actor can get to their auditions.'

David Herschell said: 'How about all those providing essential services like police, NHS, social workers, medical staff, care home staff etc. instead of a failed extra audition for Casualty?'

Emma Porter said emergency service, healthcare and military personnel should get cheaper fares, while Gary Pointin said trains were way too expensive 'full stop', and said they were also unreliable.

And Mr Long also commented on our Facebook post, and said he was not saying anyone deserved cheaper rail fares than others.

'The issue I am highlighting is that Britain has a tonne of talented actors/actresses that are undiscovered because most of them cannot afford to travel to an audition which is unpaid,' he said.

'This is a problem that could lead to a drought of British talent and the arts need to be supported. Unfortunately actors get less than 24 hours notice for auditions which make obtaining cheap rate advanced tickets impossible. So I know not everyone will agree with this but the signatures on the campaign are from 3000+ hard working actors out there.'

The petition has attracted the attention of those in the acting community, with more than 4,000 people having signed it by Sunday afternoon.

One person commenting on the petition said: 'Signed as my toddler had an audition today, only found out yesterday, and was looking at £190+ to get to London from South Wales.

'I think casting directors could help too by holding auditions out of central London!'

Another person said: 'Train travel is extortionate and takes a huge part of our wage before we even get a job.'

One person said that actors rarely have a reliable source of income.

What do you think? Does Mr Long's petition highlight a legitimate issue in the acting community, or is his suggestion 'ridiculous'? Let us know in the comments below or write to us at edpletters@archant.co.uk.