Reviews

Murder at the Manor – Chris McDermott (1996) 8,011 words

We had an excellent evening. We had trouble getting people to eat as they were so engrossed in solving the problem.
Peter Carter, Dawlpool C of E Primary School, Cheshire.

A wonderful evening, superb timing. Excellent information, easily followed, well planned.
Irene Conroy, The Mount School, York.

We had a wonderful evening which was very successful and enjoyed by all.
Cheryl Mitchell, St. Nicholas Players, Ailstree, Derby.

The package itself worked really well I would have no hesitation in recommending this to other groups.
Bros Musical productions, Barnham, West Sussex.

The evening itself is excellent, good story line, with all 5 suspects having good motives. The overall package is very helpful and many people in the audience got the correct clues but not the correct murderer. Very good layout, simple but very effective.
Becky Green, The Littleport Players, Ely Cambs.

Overall we had a fabulous evening with lots of positive comments and many looking forward to next year’s performance.
Sarah Holroyd, St Thomas’s Church, Hanwell, London.

A fun experience for all! Thanks.
Mrs Lesley Newton, St Lawrence’s Church, Scalby, Scarborough.

The audience found the evening humorous due to the way the actors performed, but mainly due to the clever way the script was put together. The Format of the Evening sheet gave me an excellent insight to time the evening properly. It worked well.
Tom Harmston, St Mary’s Church, Ecclesfield, Sheffield.

Very successful evening, raising over 500 pounds.
Geoff Fuller, Wesley Methodist Church, Leigh-On-Sea.

The whole evening went exceptionally well. It was attended very well and we made some money for the Youth Club and the Church. Thank you for your help.
Eileen Maddison, The Great Escape Youth Club at Chris Church, Belper, Derbyshire.

We had a tremendous evening, we made 600 pounds for our disabled access project at church.
Teresa Upton, Bradpole Church, Bridport, Dorset.

It was a very good evening!
Gemma Brown, St George’s Church, Farnham, Surrey.

We had a fantastic evening had over a hundred people in the audience. Everyone listened intently during the play. It was amazing how many different solutions we had. We definitely want another one next year.
Ms Gill Greenwood, St Mary Magdalene Church, Shepperton, Middlesex.

We incorporated the evening with a 3 course meal with top class acting and excellent food. The 130 people who came had a superb evening.
Derek Clark, Cranleigh Baptist Church, Cranleigh, Surrey

Our evening was a great success, enjoyed by all. We are already being asked when the next one will take place.
Mr Adrian O’Reilly, St Dunstan’s A.O.D.S., Moston, Manchester.

It was a very good evening!
Anne Hayes, St Herberts Dramatic and Entertainments Society. Chadderton, Lancs.

A brilliant evening, thoroughly enjoyed by all.
David Thomas, Christ Church, Virginia Water.

Murder Backstage – Chris McDermott (1998) 7,622 words

Successful and enjoyable evening. Thanks!
Simon Wilson, Arrow Players, Pinner, Middlesex.

The play was very good. We will again continue to purchase your excellent scripts. Thank you for your time and effort. The audience really enjoyed the play.
Kevin Harris, Kesteven and Sleaford High School, Lincs..

The over-the-top characters in this made it more fun to perform as did the setting and the story.
Mike Cooper, Catsfield Amateur Dramatic Society, Battle, East Sussex.

Good value yet again.
Barry Burdett, Queen Elizabeth Grammar School, Ashbourne, Derbys..

It was hilarious. We had tremendous fun. It was superb.
Mike Howe, Friends of St. Agnes Church, Port Talbot.

It was a good evening.
Anne Hayes, St Herberts A.D.E.S., Chadderton, Oldham.

It was an absolute hoot! Loved it! I have never seen people laugh so much in their lives and that was just in rehearsal!
Barbara Scully, Colchester Operatic Society.

The evening itself was another huge success. Annual camp is a two week event and the whole thing is organised within that two weeks. Its amazing how props can be acquired at such short notice! As with the first play (Murder and the Manor), I was not short on volunteers to act. Even the commanding officer was in this one! I can see that we will certainly be putting on another play in the future.
Sue Garland, Territorial Army Medical Unit.

Death at the Granby Arms – John McDermott (1999) 8,931 words

A great script and a wonderful night of entertainment. Thanks once again for helping us to raise 800 pounds.
Sally-Anne Hawkins, St. Chads PFTA, Wolverhampton.

Brilliant night. Thanks very much for the script.
Mrs J.R. Burnell, Friends of South Wolds School, Keyworth, Nottingham.

It was really brilliant. We would like to do an abbreviated version for the kids.
Janet Goldfinch, Little Ilford School, Manor Park, London.

A brilliant evening.
Hilary Barnes, Aston Village Hall, Market Drayton, Shropshire.

We had a great night and the script was altered to accommodate local features.
Helen Hampson, 2/88 Manchester Scouts, Stockport.

Another super evening. Our clients can’t wait for the next one.
Pat Atkinson, Battle, Sussex.

The evening was thoroughly enjoyed by all. We raised over 300 pounds. Many people had not been to a murder mystery evening before, but they certainly enjoyed this experience!
Mrs Ann Brockbank, St Johns Burlington Methodist Church, Bridlington.

A fantastic evening and wonderful comments afterwards thanks! The twist at the end of Act 2 was very good and still kept people guessing right to the last minute. The tables certainly buzzed with conversation at the interval!
Carolyn Keats, Crofton Baptist Church, Orpington.

The evening was a sellout. Everyone without exception congratulated everyone involved for an excellent evening’s entertainment. Many thanks for your helpful ideas.
Mrs Shirley Watkins, Women’s Guild, Our Lady Star of the Sea, Porthcawl.

 

Bumped Off! John McDermott (2003) (8,401 words)

We really enjoyed this one, we played the parts very over the top and some of our audience commented it that it was one of the funniest of the scripts we had done. Thank you. This kind of format works very well for us, please keep writing more!!
Christine Langford, Paddock Wood Players, The Magpies, Kent.

The murder mystery farce was the best we have performed. The actors and the audience had a good laugh, especially with all the different accents! It was an extremely enjoyable night and the church restoration fund was greatly helped.
Mrs Shirley Watkins, Women’s Guild, Our Lady Star of the Sea, Porthcawl.

Another successful evening to raise funds for the church. No improvements required, very good format!”
Josie Gliddon, Tiverton Dramatic Society.

Another excellent evening enjoyed by all.
Andrea Gosslin, Honley Players A.D.S.

We loved the humour in Bumped Off; so did the audience.
Anne Williams, Llanfairfechan Community Players.