The Kingston Bagpuize Drama Group was formed in 1949 so to celebrate their 70th anniversary they sought a Murder Mystery play set in that year. Unable to find one, group member Sarah Curran offered to write one her own. The end product and indeed World Premiere of ‘Deadly Encounter’ was performed in the village hall on May 18th to an impressive hall filled audience of 96.

The plot is built around Bunty Parlington-Dormer who has left the bright lights of London to open a theatre in the countryside, a village strangely called Kingston Bagpuize. This is much to the chagrin of her husband Robert who is more concerned with financial implications rather than the perilous state of his marriage. Bunty’s best friend Nancy is all behind her in her venture and helps her audition some aspiring actors for her first production.

These included the young Joan Smith and local yokel George. So the scene is set with housekeeper Betty Buckland flitting in and out and not being too positive with what was going on.

So the scene is set, The audience then partook of the very fine Hog Roast that accompanied the show and then settled down to Act 2 to find Bunty had been bumped off, we know not how, or why or with what and by whom.

Ms Curran had cleverly interwoven in her plot to include many famous sayings from classic films and part of the evening was to identify these. Also with a nod to the game of Cluedo, the weapons from that board game were also included in the script with lead piping, gun, knife, candlestick all making an appearance.

Emily Eastham played Bunty. She portrayed the part so well as the glamorous impresario strutting the stage broadcasting her ideas for her theatre. Andrea Spencer played Nancy again with the authority and confidence of an experienced am dram actor. Mary Elizabeth Shewry played the stage well as Betty Buckland and Mike Lacey was Robert Parlington-Dormer.

The young Fiona Eaton was impressive in the part of Joan Smith and Jack Marsh played George. The whole production was most enjoyable from the homespun script to the ad-libbed answers to questions put by the audience prior to the murderer being identified.

Director Rebecca Bellis is a young talented actor I have seen in several performances by KBDG, Deadly Encounter shows she has an equal talent in directing.

The whole piece was held together by Master of Ceremonies Rob Bateman who did a sterling job as intermediary between cast and audience.

So who did kill Bunty? Well our party nearly got it spot on except for the fact we had the wrong person with the wrong weapon for the wrong reason but hey, that’s the fun of amateur dramatics.

Well done KBDG, congratulations on a worthy production to mark 70 years of entertaining the village.