AGATHA Christie’s The Mousetrap has graced many a stage over the years - famous around the world for being the longest running show of any kind in the history of British theatre.

As part of its first ever UK tour and 60th anniversary celebrations, the legendary murder mystery production has arrived at Lighthouse, Poole where the curtains are up for a week-long performance.

With over 25,000 performances The Mousetrap is a true landmark in British theatre. Indeed, the plays longevity has ensured its popularity around the world.

Dame Agatha Christie gifted the play to her grandson Mathew Prichard in 1952, on his ninth birthday – the value and significance of which was not realised at the time. Subsequently, The Mousetrap opened in the West End of London in 1952 and it has been running continuously ever since, enjoyed by many generations lured by its universal appeal.

The Mousetrap is a unique whodunit play full of suspense, humour and thrilling drama, mapped out in a clever plot where murder lurks around every corner.

Upon its premier night the theatre was chock-full of eager viewers waiting in anticipation.

The story began with a group of unsuspecting folk gathered in a country house. Cut off by the snow, they discovered, to their horror, that there was a murderer in their midst. One by one the suspicious characters revealed their pasts until the true identity of the murderer was unmasked.

Sitting there, I was attempting to cross off assiduously those whom I thought couldn’t have done it but the plot is very clever and it’s not until the twist ending that all is revealed - a finale that audiences are traditionally asked not to reveal after leaving the theatre. That said, I won’t spoil it for future spectators, but suggest you see this marvellous, entertaining murder mystery for yourself. A ‘classic’ now on show in Dorset.

The cast includes Doctors star Michael Fenner, Joanna Croll from Sirens, Ellie Jacob from DCI Banks, Christopher Gilling from ITV’s Law and Order, Anne Kavanagh, Henry Luxemburg, Ryan Saunders and Jonathan Woolf.

Claire Williams