Ian Rankin’s fictional detective John Rebus easily made the transition from page to screen, now he’s also made the move to the stage.
Rebus: A Game Called Malice is now showing at the Oxford Playhouse until Saturday and what a thoroughly enjoyable production it is.
The play is based on the best-selling book series Rebus, and was written by Ian Rankin and Simon Reade. In a traditional whodunit style we were kept guessing until the end – but even then it was an ending no-one could have predicted.
This was a cleverly-crafted, witty tale of deception and murder unravelling over a dinner at a stately home in Edinburgh. It centred around a murder mystery game played by guests, but as the evening progressed, tensions increased and suspicions were levelled.
Retired Detective John Rebus (played by Gray O’Brien) wasn’t on the original guest list, but made a surprise appearance as a plus-one with his friend Stephanie Jeffries (played by Abigail Thaw), a legal advocate. His presence certainly made fellow guest, slippery casino owner Jack Flemming (played by Billy Hartman) feel uncomfortable. Also at the party were his much -younger social media influencer girlfriend Candida Jones (played by Jade Kennedy); with the evening hosted by married couple Harriet (played by Teresa Banham) and Paul Godwin (played by Neil McKinven).
We quickly learned more about the lives of each of the guests, but after the discovery of a dead body, mistrust was rife. We carefully tried to add up clues in an attempt to predict the play’s ending – the biggest was from Rebus ‘Read the room’ and ‘often the biggest clues were hiding in plain sight’ -but, safe to say we didn’t guess, and the ending was totally unexpected!
There really are some hilarious lines in this show, which had the audience laughing out loud. Some of our favourites included Candida “Give me new money all the time” and Rebus quipped “Is that what attracted you to Jack?”
Rebus: “I come from a time before health and fitness” Candida’s response “Yes, I can see that”
Rebus following Candida’s comment about social media platforms: “Instagram? Sounds like a dealer who makes speedy deliveries”
Safe to say, we really enjoyed this production – if you like a good story then this is for you. Tickets for Rebus: A Game Called Malice at Oxford Playhouse start from £14 and are available at the Box Office on 01865 305305 or to book online at www.oxfordplayhouse.com
