Lmit Characters

Hi!
>
I have a MySQL DB with a text field that includes both text and HTML
tags. When I invoke that field in a page, I only see the text (not the
HTML tags, of course). I only want to chow the first 50 characters of
that field, but If use the substr function the result shows my the
HTML tags, because the HTML tags could be in the middle of the substr
limit, I mean:
>
$text=This is a <B>test</Bthat I want to show
>
If I use a substr ($text, 18), I receive:
>
"This is a <B>test<"
>
I need to avoid the HTML tags and show only the text. I need only to
receive:
>
"This is a test tha" --18 characters
>
So...I need only the substring of the result of the field already
formated
>
Any suggestions?
>
Thanks!
>
Ezequiel