If Arthur Conan Doyle were alive today he’d be a very rich man. The enduring popularity of Sherlock Holmes attests to that. Although given the way that brands guard their marques, we probably wouldn’t have had the Cumberbatch TV series, and we certainly wouldn’t have had this extremely funny, tongue-in-cheek adaptation from Storyhouse at Grosvenor Park Open Air Theatre. But Conan Doyle went out of copyright in 2000, so hoorah!

Writer Molly Taylor’s conceit is that Watson (Jo Watson in this incarnation) has been invited to a crime fiction convention in Chester to talk about her work with Holmes, who has refused to come. But then a valuable painting mysteriously disappears and a faithful housekeeper dies. Holmes reveals himself to be in the audience in disguise all the time, much to the satisfaction of the conference organiser and the dissatisfaction of much put-upon local cop, DCI Ray.

The plot is further complicated by the petulant behaviour of the local toff, the Duke of Westminster no less, complete with pink trousers, and his smarter wife, the Duchess, as well as the interference of Dr Watson’s mother. There is a great deal of chasing about, puzzling over clues, and yes, they do tie it all together at the end in a mostly satisfying way. Great fun.

Holmes is played by Ethan Reid with enormous energy and a wry ‘I have seen all this sort of thing before’ approach which is exceedingly funny and drives the plot along. Meanwhile, DCI Ray is portrayed by Storyhouse veteran Howard Chadwick as though the whole thing is an enormous nuisance. Another veteran, Victoria Brazier, is a worried Mrs Hudson and an absolutely charming dead housekeeper. Eddy Westbury graces the Duke’s pink trousers with arrogance and ignorance in equal measure, while Hannah Baker as the Duchess seems to have chosen to put up with his stupidity for the money, or maybe the sex, or perhaps both? And Alyce Liburd is a fine Watson, holding the whole thing together, as they do in the books.

There are lots of others, and everyone seems to play a musical instrument. Apart from one weird scene involving large white sheets at a ball, it all works nicely thanks to the direction of Ellie Hurt.

If I have a quibble, and my regular readers will know that I always have a quibble, it is this. The park show has a regular spot where members of the audience come on stage and are ritually humiliated in return for a round of applause. So it is here, but it seems to take about 20 minutes, makes the show rather too long, adds nothing to the story and, frankly, why?

There’s another thing. The website points you at the APCOA car park, which is about five minutes walk from the venue. That’s if you can find your way as there are no signposts to the venue for people coming from the car park. More irritatingly it costs £10. TEN POUNDS to park for 3+ hours. That’s about twice what it costs at the Lowry in Salford, and I’ve always thought that was extortionate.

Parking and participation notwithstanding, this is an excellent night out. Get there early if you have unallocated seating, it’s a bit of a free-for-all. You have until August 31.

By Chris Wallis, Theatre Editor

Main image: photo credit Mark McNulty

 

The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes is at Grosvenor Park Open Air Theatre, until August 31, 2025. For more information, click here.