CRIMES, CAMERA, ACTION Embarks on UK Tour

Crimes, Camera, Action will premiere and embark on UK Tour!

Set off for golden-era Hollywood in the latest instalment of New Old Friend's hilarious Crimes... series of comedy thrillers

Written by Feargus Woods Dunlop

When a glamorous Hollywood starlet is stabbed on-set in a fatal mix-up of props, there's only one man fit for the job of solving the crime: Stan Shakespeare. Award-winning company New Old Friends return once again with the latest installment of their ever-popular Crimes... series. Inspired by the classic English writing of Agatha Christie, Noël Coward and PG Wodehouse, the madcap comedy thrillers have so far seen the company head to locations are varied as the English Riviera and the banks of the Nile. This time, they're in Golden-era Hollywood bringing in the world of Raymond Chandler and Dashiell Hammett with a slippery, hilarious case ready and waiting to be solved.

Meet Stan Shakespeare: a hard-boiled detective who has seen it all before. Or has he? When a crucial mix-up of theatrical props results in the accidental stabbing of a movie star, it sets in motion a bizarre chain of increasingly unfathomable events. Paying respectful, yet playful, homage to Humphrey Bogart, the latest creation by New Old Friends is every bit as energetic, inventive and amusing as the previous offerings in the series.

A cast of just four actors will again tackle multiple roles - sometimes within the same scene - bringing the full force of New Old Friend's talent for skillfully ramshackle comedy to the stage. Following its premiere at the Ustinov Studio in Bath in March 2020, the comedy thriller will embark on an extensive tour to venues across the UK throughout spring and early summer.

Feargus Woods Dunlop from New Old Friends said "We have always loved Film-Noir and knew we wanted to take the Crimes... series into a slightly new world to give us fresh tropes to play with and new landscapes to create nonsense in. There is a slightly different structure to a Hollywood private-eye story than an English cosy-crime one and that has been great fun to explore. We are very excited to present this fresh spin on the popular series."

New Old Friends are an award-winning theatre company dedicated to creating original comedy theatre, founded in 2008 and run by husband and wife team Feargus Woods Dunlop and Heather Westwell. In 2017 and 2018 the company were awarded the Creative Bath Award for writing. Previous shows include five installments of the hugely popular Crimes... series of comedy thrillers, including 2019's spring hit Crimes on the Nile. In summer 2019, their adaptation of Anthony Horowitz' The Falcon's Malteser enjoyed a six-week run at London's Vaults Theatre. It was selected as a 'Critic's Choice' for 'Best Family Shows' by the Guardian. Their latest show for families, Swiss Family Robinson (Top 40 Christmas shows 2019, inews) premiered at The Core at Corby Cube last Christmas.

Tour Dates

12th - 28th Mar Ustinov Studio, Bath

Sawclose, Bath, BA1 1ET

2.30pm Thurs and Sat matinees, 7.45pm evenings | £17.50

www.theatreroyal.org.uk | 01225 448844

4th Apr Octagon Theatre, Yeovil

Hendford, Yeovil, Somerset, BA20 1UX

7.30pm | £15-£16.50

www.octagon-theatre.co.uk | 01935 462341

8th - 9th Apr The Core at Corby Cube

George Street, Corby, NN17 1QG

7.30pm | £15

www.thecorecorby.com | 01536 470470

14th April Taliesin, Swansea

Swansea University, Singleton Park, Swansea, SA2 8PZ

7.30pm | £10-£12

www.taliesinartscentre.co.uk | 01792 602 060

15th - 16th Apr Theatre Royal Winchester

21 - 23 Jewry Street, Winchester, SO23 8SB

1.30pm and 7.30pm | £19

www.theatreroyalwinchester.co.uk | 01962 840 440

17th Apr Grand Pavilion, Porthcawl

The Esplanade, Porthcawl, CF36 3YW

7.30pm | £16.50

www.grandpavilion.co.uk | 01656 815995

19th Apr Exeter Northcott

Stocker Rd, Exeter EX4 4QB

7.30pm | £16-£22

www.exeternorthcott.co.uk | 01392 72 63 63

22nd - 23rd Apr Gala Theatre, Durham

Millennium Place, Durham, DH1 1WA

2.30pm and 7:30pm | £14-£16

www.galadurham.co.uk | 03000 266 600

25th Apr Theatre Royal, Margate

Addington Street, Margate CT9 1PW

7.30pm | £13-£17

www.margate-live.com | 01843 292795

27th Apr - 2nd May Palace Theatre, Southend

430 London Road, Westcliff-on-Sea SS0 9LA

2.30pm and 8pm | £20-£29

www.southendtheatres.org.uk | 01702 351135

6th - 9th May Eden Court, Inverness

Bishop's Road, Inverness, IV3 5SA

2pm and 7pm | £17

www.edencourt.co.uk | 01463 234 234

12th May Torch Theatre, Milford Haven

St. Peter's Road, Milford Haven, Pembrokeshire, SA73 2BU

7.30pm | £16-£18

www.torchtheatre.co.uk | 01646 695267

14th - 15th May The Dukes, Lancaster

Moor Lane, Lancaster, LA1 1QE

2pm and 7.30pm | £10-£18

www.dukes-lancaster.org | 01524 598500

19th May Lakeside Arts, Nottingham

University Park, Notingham, NG7 2R

7.30pm | £13-£17

20th May Didcot Cornerstone

25 Station Road, Didcot, Oxon, OX11 7NE

7.30pm | £12-£14

www.cornerstone-arts.org | 01235 515144

21st - 23rd May The Haymarket, Basingstoke

Churchill Way, Basingstoke, RG21 7QR

2pm and 7.30pm | £23 (£12 conc)

www.anvilarts.org.uk | 01256 844244

26th May The Hawth, Crawley

Hawth Avenue, Crawley, RH10 6YZ

7.30pm | £20

www.parkwoodtheatres.co.uk | 01293 553636

27th May The Lights, Andover

West Street, Andover, Hampshire, SP10 1AH

7.30pm | £14-£16

www.thelights.org.uk | 01264 368 368

29th May Middlesborough Theatre

The Avenue, Middlesbrough, TS5 6SA

7.30pm | £18

www.middlesbroughtheatre.co.uk | 01642 81 51 81

30th - 31st May Tacchi Morris, Taunton

School Road, Taunton, Somerset, TA2 8PD

2.30pm & 7.30pm | £15

www.tacchi-morris.com | 01823 41 41 41

2nd June Theatre Royal Wakefield

Drury Lane, Wakefield, West Yorkshire, WF1 2TE

7.30pm | £12-£18

www.theatreroyalwakefield.co.uk | 01924 211 311

3rd June Alnwick Playhouse

Bondgate Without, Alnwick, NE66 1PQ

7.30pm | £14-£15

www.alnwickplayhouse.co.uk | 01665 660550

4th June Hexham Queen's Hall

Beaumont Street, Hexham, NE46 3LS

7.30pm | £16.50

www.queenshall.co.uk | 01434 652477

6th - 7th June Merlin Theatre, Frome

Bath Rd, Frome BA11 2HG

7.30pm | £16

www.merlintheatre.co.uk | 01373 465949