"Picture You Dead" by Peter James.

Adapted for the stage by Shaun McKenna.

Nottingham Theatre Royal.

Superintendent Roy Grace is back in a brand-new Peter James stage adaptation of the best selling novel "Picture You Dead".

Back home in Brighton, DSI Grace investigates a cold case that leads him to the secretive world of fine art, but beneath the respectable veneer lurks a dark underworld of deception and murder.

When one unsuspecting couple, Freya and Harry Kipling, unearth a potentially priceless masterpiece, after buying it at a car boot sale for £20.00 because they liked the frame, they discover that their dream find is about to turn into their worst nightmare, and only Grace can stop them from paying the ultimate price.

They ask Dave Hegarty for help regarding the painting and he advises that they should get professional advice as to the originality of the art work, so go on The Antique Roadshow on TV where they receive some potentially fantastic news. But it's that television exposure that also attracts the attention of some rather nasty people, who will do anything to get what they want!

Peter Ash plays Dave Hegarty, an art copyist. Soap fans will recognise Peter from playing Paul Foreman in "Coronation Street". His exit from the soap involved a storyline about Motor Neurone Disease (MND), which won him many awards. Hegarty is based on real-life ex-forger and now famous art copyist David Henty, whose art work adorns the set. 

You very quickly forget Peter's soap role and enjoy his stage work and completely believe this art copyist character. There are times when you think that Hegarty may just be in with the bad guys, but as the old saying goes, "no good deed goes unpunished", so just wait for the series of twists, and especially that final one that wipes the smile off Hegarty's and another stage character's face!

Another ex-soap star, Fiona Wade, who played Priya Sharma in another of my favourite soaps, "Emmerdale", plays Freya Kipling. Fiona recently appeared at Nottingham's Theatre Royal in the wonderfully supernatural chiller "2:22 A Ghost Story" last year. Freya was never a fan of the painting, until she is told that this one could be worth millions, after which, she started to like art just a little bit more. But does she like it enough to die for?

Harry Kipling is played by Ben Cutler. Kipling is a builder who's friends with Hegarty, and to whom he consults regarding the £20.00 car boot sale bargain and how to clean it up. There's a lovely chemistry between this stage husband and wife, and you join in with their feelings of never having to work again due to their lucky find. Loved Harry's reaction when told by De Souza just how much the painting may be worth, if it's an original, especially as it's during a filmed section for the TV roadshow.

Oliver De Souza, the host of "The Antiques Roadshow", played by Adam Morris, suggests they might have, at least, a School of Fragonard, which is worth a great deal, but not as much as if an original Fragonard. 

Jodie Steele, who has appeared in such shows as "Six" and "Wicked" in the West End plays the part of Roberta Kilgore, accomplice to art dealer, Stuart Piper. Jodie presents a deliciously nastiness with this character, and the temperature seems to drop a couple of degrees every time she walks on stage. Kilgore lets nothing stand in her way and seems to be an ideal foil for Piper, until Piper stands in her way. There's a clue that connects her to a former killing, but can you pick up on it? It's all in the clever writing and in a throwaway line delivered by the law.

Stuart Piper, who has a dodgy sideline that is anything but artistic, is played almost reptilian like by Nicholas Maude. The back story for Piper is revealed throughout the first act, which shows a very dark and dangerous side to him. 

George Rainsford, who most will recognise from his role of Ethan Hardy in BBC1's "Casualty", returns to the role of DSI Grace. George is no stranger to the Nottingham Theatre Royal after being in "2:22 A Ghost Story" with Fiona, as well as "Wish You Were Dead" here back in 2023.

Grace, and his Detective Sergeant Moy, have recently reopened a case from a few years ago regarding the murder of an art dealer and feel that this recent find may be in some way a link to the recently unsolved case. They have all the pieces of the jigsaw and bit by bit they start to piece everything together. Grace and Moy drip feed us various clues and discoveries throughout the show, allowing us to play amateur detective, but then comes the series of twists that not even the law could have envisaged.

Gemma Stroyan plays the part of Sergeant Bella Moy. What I like about Peter James's books is that he makes the sidekicks almost as intelligent as DSI Grace, which gives you the confidence to know that between the two police officers, we know that the crimes will be solved without one or the other being detrimental to the investigation.

Mark Oxtoby plays Archie Goff, a burglar who has recently been sprung from jail. Isn't it a big coincidence that a known house burglar gets his bail posted just days after this massive art find is broadcast? No coincidence at all, but who could have the money to pay £50,000 to spring Goff? At least when he was behind bars he was safe, and what he thought was a straight forward burglary turns out to be anything but!

Directed by Jonathan O' Boyle. He manages to combine all of the expected thriller elements with some lovely lighter moments, especially with the banter between Freya and Harry.

The Composer and Sound Designer is Max Pappenheim. This is particularly effective the more the story goes on and the tension and uncertainty builds brilliantly as we get into the second act.

Lighting Designer is Jason Taylor, who manages to create that impending suspense build up wonderfully.

The Set Designer, Adrian Linford, creates an intricate but effective stage and set design. Between the Kipling's house, the art studio and a room at Piper's country house, the scene changes are smooth due to the lighting highlighting each area of the stage. The front of the stage is where Grace and Moy use as the police station, which needs no set, but we know what the area is instinctively. and as these scenes are fleeting it makes sense for what would be flash scenes if on TV.

If you love the gentler thrillers of Agatha Christie, or writers of that ilk, you'll love this production because it has all the tension and mystery of a Christie classic combined with that unmistakable Peter James style. There are plenty of thrills, a couple of jump scares and that final twist which I certainly did not see coming, but put a smile on my face.

"Picture You Dead" is at the Nottingham Theatre Royal until Saturday 15 March.