bookshelves: mystery-thriller, autumn-2010, play-dramatisation, published-1983, amusing, fraudio, music
Recommended for: R4 listeners
Read from November 22 to December 14, 2010
2.5* Pretty weak.
A series of nasty accidents befall the cast of the play Charles is appearing in. Is it bad luck or is someone out to sabotage the production.
Charles Paris ..... Bill Nighy
Frances ..... Suzanne Burden
Maurice ..... Jon Glover
Fabio ..... Theo Cross
Tony ..... Sam Dale
Lindsay ..... Christine Kavanagh
Ronnie ..... Sean Baker
Sean ..... Iain Batchelor
Phoebe ..... Claire Harry
Chris ..... Henry Devas
Landlady ..... Sally Orrock
Barmaid ..... Leah Brotherhead
Directed by Sally Avens
blurb - As ever, Charles is his own worst enemy, a louche lush who can resist anything except temptation especially in the form of women and alcohol. His intentions may be good but somehow the results always go wrong He's been out of work so long now he feels he may never get a job and he's driving Frances his semi-ex-wife mad. So when he's offered a small role in an awful play up in Rugland she nearly pushes him out the door. But as always with Charles murder is never far behind.
Simon Brett again takes us behind the scenes in a back-stage drama of crime and detection in Murder In The Title. This time it's the world of provincial rep, with an historic theatre threatened with closure by unscrupulous property developers. And the theatre management seems to be digging its own grave: a deplorable choice of current productions; a painfully incompetent director; bizarre accidents happening on stage.