The Farndale Avenue Housing Estate Townswomen’s Guild Dramatic Society – Murder Mystery Murder at Checkmate Manor

First performed at the Edinburgh Fringe in August 1980 this play is one of a number from the Farndale Avenue collect. A play within a play with more things going wrong than going right.

The setting for the play was just right. The cast initially in the hall welcoming the audience alongside the stewards showing people where they were sat.

The play opens with the chairman of the dramatic society Mrs Reece (Elizabeth Karban) welcoming everyone and giving several announcements in the traditional way. These set the scene for the rest of the evening. We are told about someone misbehaving in the tea urn (cleaned out with Dettol) and a change to the cast due to the indisposed of a member of cast. We are told this person was now managing to form a few sentences which was more than they did when in the play! We were then treated (or not) to a few holiday snaps taken on the Isle of Man.

From then on everything goes wrong for our troupe of five actors. The wrong prop handed out, lights going on and off at the wrong time, snow throwing when the window is opened, actors standing in the wrong place, so they can’t be strangled from the wings – and this was only the first few pages!!

Other than Gordon (Richard Delahaye) playing Inspector O’ Reilly each of the other cast members Audrey (Kim Topham), Felicity (Jan Brennan), Thelma (Jess Billingham) and Mrs Reece play a number of different roles. At times actors need to change role with speed. It was evident the whole play was well rehearsed to get it so wrong and therefore right. It would not be impossible to highlight one of the actors as each of them gave a strong performance throughout the whole play. For this achievement the cast should be congratulated. I did really enjoy the musical number which suddenly occurred in act two ‘I Could be Happy with You’ which was very funny and slick in the routine.

There was an interval of course during which the audience devoured a light supper while considering the answers to a short quiz. Question three was not easy as we needed to identify who had made a deliberate mistake in the first act! 

The set was effective and had intentional errors such as a door which didn’t open, a pull cord that came off, a chair which broke, an upside-down fire and a table that collapses. Equally well done were sound effects such as a car leaving before the actors had time to get to it.

This was Ian Underwood’s first show as director. Well done to him and the whole team for a fun evening and enjoyable supper into the bargain.

As always, I look forward to seeing everyone at COMIC Theatre Company again next year.

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