The Real Inspector Hound by Tom Stoppard

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4th to 6th November 1999

Programme Cover

CAST & CREW

Director/Producer - Michael Broadbent

Moon - Stuart Isherwood

Birdboot - Paul Heyworth

Mrs Drudge - Denise Brooks

Simon - Ian Murray

Felicity - Anne-Marie Cruickshank

Cynthia - Joanne Ingham

Magnus - Michael Britland

Inspector Hound - Michael Broadbent

The Body - Ben Broadbent

Production Team

Prompt - Ian Cunningham

Stage Manager/Props - Paul Brooks

Make up & Hair - Millie Santus

Set design & construction -

Graham Brindle, Paul Brooks, Paul Santus, Bill Nuttall

Lighting - Paul Santus

Sound - Bill Nuttall

THE PLAY

Two theatre critics, Moon and Birdboot, come to review the latest play. While watching the show, Birdboot obsesses over how he will seduce the young ingénue of the play, and Moon obsesses over always being the second string to the theatre critic Higgs.

The play they are watching takes place at isolated Muldoon Manor, home of Lady Cynthia Muldoon whose husband walked out onto the cliffs 10 years ago and disappeared. She is joined by her maid Mrs. Drudge, her friend Felicity Cunningham, and Major Magnus, Lord Muldoon's crippled half-brother. A madman is loose in their neighborhood, they are warned, and the mysterious Simon Gascoyne suddenly wanders into their midst.

During an evening game of cards, Inspector Hound arrives to investigate a murder, but no murder has taken place. A dead body is discovered, but who is it? When everyone leaves to search the house for the murderer, Simon gets shot.

In between acts, while no one is on stage, the phone rings. Birdboot goes on stage to answer it. Before he can return to his seat, the actors begin again, and he is caught up in the action. The same act is replayed, but with Birdboot filling Simon's role.

Birdboot discovers the identity of the dead body. He tries to return to his seat, but something terrible happens. Moon rushes onto stage to help out right when the next scene is starting. This time Moon fills the role of Inspector Hound and the actors playing Simon and Hound take over Moon's and Birdboot's seats and roles as theatre critics.

Moon tries to discover who the murderer is before he gets killed.