The Play That Never Ends

Rerun. Agatha Christie’s ‘The Mousetrap’, the world’s longest-running play, opened at the Theatre Royal, Nottingham on 6th October, 1952, with a cast including Richard Attenborough. The producer, Peter Saunders, predicted the production would run for 14 months.

More than 28,000 performances later, the show has become an iconic attraction in London’s West End, with a set that still includes the original mantelpiece clock present on stage on opening night nearly 70 years ago.

In this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly unpick the unconventional choices Christie made with the copyright of the play; recount Noel Coward’s begrudging correspondence with her when it overtook Blithe Spirit as the West End’s longest-running play; and uncover the tragic backstory that inspired its plot… WITHOUT REVEALING THE TWIST!

Further Reading:

• History timeline from ‘The Mousetrap’s official website (2021): https://uk.the-mousetrap.co.uk/the-history/

• “Less in it than meets the eye” - The Guardian’s original review of the production (1952): https://www.theguardian.com/stage/2015/nov/27/the-mousetrap-agatha-christie-opens-london-1952

• ‘Meet The Cast of The Mousetrap’ (Theatre Cafe, 2018): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_jKdE_gmen0

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The Retrospectors are Olly Mann, Rebecca Messina & Arion McNicoll, with Matt Hill.

Theme Music: Pass The Peas. Announcer: Bob Ravelli. Graphic Design: Terry Saunders. Edit Producer: Sophie King.

Copyright: Rethink Audio / Olly Mann 2022.

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