Cheriton Players 
Cheriton Village Hall, Cheriton, Nr Alresford 
Anne Waggott 
13 November 2025
A big fan of Agatha Christie’s writings (and just as partial to the odd spoof), I was delighted to be invited to review Cheriton Players’ latest production, comedy gem Agatha Crusty And The Village Hall Murders. Always assured of a warm welcome from this small village group with a large heart, what a pleasantly amusing evening it turned out to be.
Agatha Crusty, acclaimed crime novelist, is a formidable amateur sleuth … which is just as well, seeing as murders seem to follow her around wherever she goes! When Agatha’s sister-in-law, Alice, invites her to stay for a few days in the tiny village of Chortleby, it’s not long before the seemingly inevitable body count starts to mount up amongst the members of All Saints Village Hall committee. No surprise, really, with the bumbling inept Inspector Twigg on the case!
What is somewhat surprising, however, is just how much this parody feels like a genuine murder mystery alongside the witty script, one liners and visual treats. Despite a slightly hesitant start with the usual opening night nerves, this production kept me engaged, enthralled and entertained as the ideally cast actors settled into their roles. There was no need to be nervous, though… the performances are all rather good, well suited to their characters!
Under Marilyn Weston’s fine direction (in, I believe, her first directing role), the actors gelled together splendidly in a cohesive ensemble production, without any weak links, and their clear enjoyment of the play was shared by the sell-out audience.
Jane Wilde is super as Agatha Crusty with a sincerely authentic portrayal, fluid natural movements, excellent comic timing and deadpan delivery. Pronounced ‘Croosty’, the mispronunciation of her surname is as annoying to Agatha as ‘Bucket’ rather than ‘Bouquet’ is to Hyacinth, with her understated exasperation subtly reflected throughout the play.
Paul Willcox is both endearing and infuriating as the incompetent Inspector, skillfully delivering his rhyming tongue twister patters and Spoonerisms in keeping with his blundering character. Katie Hinds is so amusing as the enthusiastically efficient Chair of the Village Hall committee, with a comically heightened performance full of exaggerated facial expressions, that also leaves the audience in no doubt that she nurtures a not-so-secret passion for the local friendly yet naïve Vicar (charmingly portrayed by Tim Conway).
Jane Richards (straight-talking cleaner Maisie), Mike Cornter (sarcastic caretaker Harry) and Pauline Cornter (cheerful pub landlady Isabella) embrace their roles to great effect, with both Isobel Wolf (model Mandy) and Jan Conway (Agatha’s kind sister-in-law Alice) having their moments to shine, while Jamie Herdman literally hits the boards in the briefest of cameos and John Weston is clearly having a ball in his dual roles as landed gentry twins, Olive and Oliver!
There is very appropriate music to cover the scene changes by the quietly efficient stage crew, placing an array of suitable props in a simple yet well designed set, with smooth transitions between the scenes. However, as these were carried out under blue working lights, at times I felt the complete blackouts before the action picked up again interrupted the flow, but I’m confident this will be smoothed out during the rest of the run. Otherwise, after that slightly hesitant start, the play picked up to a good brisk pace and the evening flew by.
With another sold-out success from Cheriton Players, if you don’t have a ticket, you really will be missing a most enjoyable production. For those of you who do, enjoy – and see if you can work out “whodunnit” before Agatha!
