Murder At Midnight Is Comedy Gold At The Rep

A missing woman. The family that Lock Stock forgot. A hapless policeman trying to solve a case and save his career, whilst not getting involved with a leggy blonde who may just be a killer. And Robbie Williams, lots of Robbie Williams. This is the premise for the utterly hilarious Murder at Midnight, a comedy thriller from Torben Betts that is currently showing at the Birmingham Rep and is one of the funniest things you will see in theatre in this, or any other year.

Jason Durr is Johnny, a one eyed gangster masquerading as a pig farmer. He lives with his mother Shirley, who is all kinds of crazy and sees devils at every turn, and his girlfriend Lisa, who he teamed up with in pretty quick time after the mysterious disappearance of his wife Alex. Anyone of them could be responsible for the death of Alex, but no one has ever been charged following a botched police investigation. Enter Paul, who is determined to find the truth on New Years Eve, Trainwreck, an ex con with a shared past with Johnny, Russell – a possible killer clown and Cristina, a Romanian cleaner, and you have the recipe for an unforgettable New Years Eve.

Murder at Midnight is just hilarious. The wonderful cast are flawless, playing everything totally straight. Jason Durr plays the psychotic Johnny as a cross between Ronnie Kray and Boycey, with a scene stealing Susie Blake spilling all the secrets as the demented Shirley. Max Bowden and Katie McGlynn excel as Paul and Lisa, particularly in their excruciating bedroom scenes, showing their versatility in roles a million miles away from their famous soap roles, while Peter Moreton is an absolute hoot as Trainwreck, absolutely bringing the house down with his great reveal. Callum Balmforth as clown masking wearing Russell just adds to the mayhem, and it is left to the excellent Iryna Poplavska as Cristina to try to bring some sanity to the increasingly insane situations.

Murder at Midnight is deliciously dark and funny, and the staging, with many different events happening simultaneously, is wonderfully done.

One part murder mystery, 2 parts farce that Brian Rix would be proud of, Murder at Midnight is an absolute triumph that will make you laugh out loud.

Murder At Midnight

Birmingham Rep Theatre until 20th September

Ticket information here 

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