And welcome to the start of a busy couple of weeks.
This time next week I’ll be thrumming with excitement at the prospect of the upcoming party Tina and I will be hosting to mark our joint 50th year.
Of course in the meantime there’s a million and one things to do, just to make sure everything is as it should be (people to remind to turn up, balloons to inflate, vegetarian sausages to pre-order, etc) but that will all come. For now, I think it’s wise to leave those irons in their respective fires and concentrate on this Friday. A day which will see us don our deerstalkers and investigate… a murder!
The Lady Vanishes
Alright, not a real murder (well, hopefully not). This is a murder mystery night I received as a present for my birthday. A Murder Is Announced for Friday evening, and is due to take place in The Garden Room of The Old Swan Hotel, Harrogate (really, someone should warn the police).
Those of you who are keen on murder mysteries may know that The Old Swan is the hotel that one Agatha Christie was found in after she mysteriously disappeared from her Berkshire home in December of 1926, amidst the implosion of her first marriage.
Personally, I like to think that alongside the stress and strain of the time, and the need to get away from the prying eyes of the scandal sheets, a glint of the deliciously fiendish imagination that birthed so many ingenious, intricately plotted crimes was present. I could almost see her in her hotel room with a sad but satisfied smile on her lips as the country uproots itself to find her.
Location, Location, Location
Regardless, her subsequent discovery in North Yorkshire, makes the Old Swan the ideal location for our very own murder mystery event. Neither Tina nor I know a huge amount about the proceedings (hence ‘mystery’), but we have been told it will start at 8, with an intermission for a meal. Drinks (hopefully not of Sparkling Cyanide) will be available throughout, with the associated risk of clouding the analytical mind.
The other thing we have been forewarned of, is that the setting for our evening of crime and detection will be the 1950s and that 50’s dress is encouraged. To that end, Tina has acquired a polka dot dress with a flared skirt and fitted, long sleeved bodice. This, alongside her converse shoes, a neckerchief, and a high ponytail should be just about perfect. For my part I’ve got a two-tone bowling shirt to wear with my chinos and have invested in some hair gel. Very 50s. Very ‘Grease’.
Title Card
As you can probably tell, we’re both fully committed to whatever shenanigans await us, and are looking forward to it immensely. We’ve undertaken an ‘at home’ murder mystery game before and Friday night, with its promise of dramatic scenes played out by proper actors to go along with the physical clues, alibis, and motives, promises to be a level or two over and above.
Personally, I like to think that alongside the stress and strain of the time, and the need to get away from the prying eyes of the scandal sheets, a glint of the deliciously fiendish imagination that birthed so many ingenious, intricately plotted crimes was present. I could almost see her in her hotel room with a sad but satisfied smile on her lips as the country uproots itself to find her.
Location, Location, Location
Regardless, her subsequent discovery in North Yorkshire, makes the Old Swan the ideal location for our very own murder mystery event. Neither Tina nor I know a huge amount about the proceedings (hence ‘mystery’), but we have been told it will start at 8, with an intermission for a meal. Drinks (hopefully not of Sparkling Cyanide) will be available throughout, with the associated risk of clouding the analytical mind.
The other thing we have been forewarned of, is that the setting for our evening of crime and detection will be the 1950s and that 50’s dress is encouraged. To that end, Tina has acquired a polka dot dress with a flared skirt and fitted, long sleeved bodice. This, alongside her converse shoes, a neckerchief, and a high ponytail should be just about perfect. For my part I’ve got a two-tone bowling shirt to wear with my chinos and have invested in some hair gel. Very 50s. Very ‘Grease’.
Title Card
As you can probably tell, we’re both fully committed to whatever shenanigans await us, and are looking forward to it immensely. We’ve undertaken an ‘at home’ murder mystery game before and Friday night, with its promise of dramatic scenes played out by proper actors to go along with the physical clues, alibis, and motives, promises to be a level or two over and above.
I think by the time we’ve completed the short trip, booked in, and changed into our clobber, we’ll be flying—like Poirot in Death In The Clouds as we interrogate each Dumb Witness, work out the timeline of our Three Act Tragedy, lay our Cards On The Table, face The Secret Adversary—our Nemesis—and as the Endless Night draws to a close, take the Curtain with a (hopefully) triumphant bow.
If, that is, we can engage the little grey cells, mon ami!
Until next time.
#
Hey, there! If you enjoyed reading any of the above, why not take a look at some of my published work? Below you’ll find links to a number of short stories I’m lucky enough to have included in anthologies. I’d love to know what you think.
New Tales Of Old
Death Ship
Pestilence: Drabbles 1
Reaperman: Drabbles 3
The Musketeers Vs Cthulhu
Eldritch Investigations
No comments:
Post a Comment