Brighton Theatre Royal is immersed in the dangerous world of the picturesque fictional county of Midsomer for this well received cozy murdering romp.
The Killings at Badger’s Drift was the first episode of the beloved television series, Midsomer Murders, back in 1997. Almost thirty years on it is still a firm favourite among the ITV schedules, and now has been adapted for the stage by Guy Unsworth, who also directs.
It the small village of Badger’s Drift Emily Simpson is found dead. This is not considered suspicious as Emily is 85, but her great friend, Lucy Bellringer, is absolutely certain it was foul play. To that end she turns to local coppers DCI Tom Barnaby and Sergeant Gavin Troy and creates a fuss about the death. Begruddingly talked into the case the two policemen find the village full of secrets, blackmail, revenge and of course, murder!
DCI Barnaby is played excellently by Daniel Casey in somewhat of a role-reversal, as he originally played Sergeant Troy in the TV series from it’s inception in 1997 to 2008, opposite TV detective royalty John Nettles. There is a great burst of laughter as Casey, now as Barnaby, introduces Sergeant Troy to Ms Bellringer in appreciation of this fact.
Unsworth’s adaptation is full of these knowing nods to the TV series. It’s a nice touch that the play is also set in 1997, with some occasional inference to the time period. Including the Peter Andre hit Mysterious Girl being briefly played on the car stereo. All these reference are greeted by warmth and laughter in the room as our collective memory is jogged.
There are plenty of tongue in cheek moments too. It’s a funny script, which sometimes gets a little bogged down in exposition but is allows several characters to shine.
Several characters stand out, as the odd inhabitants of Badgers Drift are revealed. John Dougall as the fabulously grotesque Iris Rainbird and Rupert Sadler as her extremely odd son, Michael steal all the scenes they are in. There are shades of Hinge and Bracket in their performance and it is a comedy delight to see.
Julie Legrand is especially funny as the robust and redoubtable Lucy Bellringer and Chandrika Chevli has a wonderful interrogation scene where she plays two different characters simultaneously. It is these comedy moments that elevate the play from a normal murder mystery into a rib tickling joy.
Casey has the harder job of being the straight man to the fools and phonies that surround him. He pulls this off well and even momentarily gets his own comedy vignette in the form of a surreal dream with also delights the theatre goers.
James Bradwell as Sergeant Troy is very effective as the plodding comedy companion to Barnaby’s bright minded DCI.
David Woodhead’s attempt to recreate the Midsomer countryside is done in a fun and clever way. A large round window at the back of the stage, detailing ‘Midsomer County’ and pretty houses of the village beyond serves as a backdrop for multiple sets and sometimes uses by characters inside the window to comic effect. The staging that slides on and off stage is also used in a funny way, which add more laughter in the room.
Unsworth has done a good job of weaving the plot with the wonderfully bizarre characters on the whole, although a few scenes drag due the explanatory nature of a murder mystery, which is hard to avoid. Having said that, this is a production excellently acted, with plenty of charm and funny moments, enough to satisfy fans of the show and win over the uninitiated.
Reviewed on 3rd February.
