Bill Nighy stars as the suave thespian sleuth in this BBC Radio 4 full-cast dramatisation.

Life is good for Charles Paris. He's moved back in with his estranged wife, and has landed a plum stage role as Sir Toby Belch in Twelfth Night. But it can't last. First his attempts to woo Frances fall flat, then the play's director is taken ill with gastric trouble. His replacement, Romanian wunderkind Alex Radelescu, is determined to take the play in a radical new direction—with or without Charles.

When a second member of the company falls sick, Charles begins to suspect a poisoner is on the loose—and the next victim could be him. Can he unmask the culprit before this comedy turns into a tragedy?

Adapted by Jeremy Front, this engaging dramatisation stars Bill Nighy as Charles Paris, with Suzanne Burden as Frances, Jon Glover as Maurice and Julian Rhind-Tutt as Alex Radelescu.

Production credits

Written by Simon Brett

Adapted by Jeremy Front

Produced and directed by Sally Avens

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4, 30 August-20 September 2006

Cast

Charles Paris - Bill Nighy

Frances - Suzanne Burden

Maurice - Jon Glover

Ken Carter - Peter Wight

Alex Radelescu - Julian Rhind-Tutt

Vivienne Marlin - Elizabeth Bell

Gavin Scholes - Thomas Wheatley

Jack Bradley - John Cummins

Sally Luther - Tracy Wiles

Ben Ritson - Tom Lawrence

Vasile Bogdan/Scott - Ryan McCluskey

Talya Northcott - Alex Tregear

Inspector Dewar - Kim Wall