Peter James: The Perfect Murder

Peter James pens very fine crime fiction indeed but the crime here was one of mistaken identity. Was this a thriller or a farce? Played hugely for laughs, and very well played I will say, it lacked that sense of suspense that I get from reading his novels, which I do avariciously. The company are good, Les Dennis is excellent and Claire Goose too. But the choice of music made it lurch from ‘George And Mildred’ to Hammer House of Horror rather disarmingly. Steven Miller’s Roy Grace was sadly not the policeman in my mind and one wondered why he was having anything to do with this comedic confection. That said James delivers an excellent plot, as usual, and the packed audience of fans lapped it up – for the most part.

Theatre Royal Brighton, 28 January 2014

Rating: