Sweet Revenge

Reporter: Colin Meredith
Date online: 12 June 2008

St Annes Players had the audience at the Parish Hall gripped on the edge of their seats for this production of SWEET REVENGE by Francis Durbridge. Like all good thrillers this one had a complex plot, which the strong company handled with great skill.

The play opened with an impressive set recreating the riverside home of consultant, Ross Marquand. Ross played by Andy McKay is a successful, happily married cardiac consultant - until his wife, Fay (Jennifer Durrans) announces she has fallen in love with a notorious womaniser, Julian Kane (David Stopford). Later, Ross' assistant (Judith Mansfield) discovers two phials missing of Zarabell Four, a drug potentially lethal to cardiac patients.

When Julian dies from a heart attack, all fingers point to Ross. As the play progresses however, many enemies of the deceased are revealed as each guest at the annual regatta is discovered to have a personal motive for Julians demise. These include Fay's brother Alan (Neil Bamford) who owes him £18,000, her best friend Marian (Susan Howarth), Ross' friend and fellow doctor Sam (Michael Cole) and a local businessman and friend of Ross's Bill (Ian Mansfield). Detective Norman Sanders (Peter Dignam) becomes even more confused when he discovers that more than one person had a motive to kill the Julian.

The audience were kept guessing right up to the final moments of this well thought out thriller. Director Ian Mansfield is to be congratulated on getting such an accomplice team who performed together well.

Sweet Revenge
St. Annes Players
Parish Hall
14 October 2004