A Murder is Announced

What a fabulous experience to be part of a packed audience at Skipton Little Theatre. It is wonderful that the people of Skipton get behind their local arts amenities and allow them to flourish. It was also excellent to see from their programme that such a large team had been a part of this production. Skipton Players are clearly alive and well and thriving in Skipton.

A Murder is Announced is a classic whodunnit originally penned by Agatha Christie and adapted by Leslie Darbon. There are twists and turns along the way, revealing the secret past of many of the characters as they are questioned by the pompous but plodding Inspector Craddock played sincerely by Steve Charlton. Meanwhile, they are observed forensically by Miss Marple and she, of course, comes to the right conclusion. Linda Howell was not your stereotypical Miss Marple performed iconically by Margaret Rutherford, Joan Hickson or Julia McKenzie. But nevertheless, she calmly demonstrated her hawk-eyed observational skills and confidently drew all the right conclusions.

The main suspects were all newcomers to the village. Suitably suspicious in their performances were William Borrows as Patrick Simmons, Beth Hughes as Phillipa Haymes, Hannah Powell as Mrs Swettenham and Iain Barwick as Edward Swettenham. Beth Tudor showed great promise in her role as Julia Simmons, with excellent body language throughout. She was really believable in this role.

Huge energy was brought to the stage by Sue Hartley who played the role of Mitzi. The audience really looked forward to her dominating entrances and her catch phrase: ‘Thank you. You’re welcome.’ An excellent portrayal and a convincing accent. The hesitant Dora Bunner (Christine Shaw) could so easily have been another suspect, but she was bumped off by the end of Act One. And, of course the one that no-one suspected turned out to be the murderer, but I’m not allowed to say the name.

Joanne Whistler took on the anchor role of Letitia Blacklock. Although rather too young for this role, her stately appearance gave her the necessary gravitas. She confidently held the whole show together. Add to this support from Philip Smith in possibly his smallest role ever and director Patrick Smith giving a cameo as the sergeant and you have the whole cast which, amazingly, fitted on this tiny SLT stage.

Full marks to Patrick for arranging the cast on the stage to avoid it looking confused and crowded. There was also good detail in the set which manage to give the illusion of two large reception rooms knocked into one on a stage the size of a postage stamp. I noticed that when the doors opened there was also a set behind which gave the credible impression of the hallway of an imposing house. Congratulations to Phil Smith, Patrick Smith and Ruthie Rogerson for this. Mike Rogerson operated the tech and make up was by Keavy Drane.

Thank you so much for inviting me to the show, it is always great to see really local theatre bringing quality entertainment to small communities. Good to see from the pre-show presentation that the theatre is also being used as a venue for touring theatre and music. All good wishes for your projects in the coming year.

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