"Murder At Midnight" by Torben Betts.

Derby Theatre.

It’s New Year’s Eve in a quiet corner of Kent and a killer is in the house…

Inside we meet Jonny "The Cyclops" – the notorious gangster, who is a massive Robbie Williams fan, so much so that he has named all eight of his vicious dogs after Robbie and Robbie's big hits, his glamorous girlfriend, his trigger-happy sidekick, his mum—who’s seeing things, her very jittery carer, plus a vicar who’s hiding something, and a nervous burglar dressed as a clown. Throw in a suitcase full of cash, a stash of deadly weapons, and one infamous unsolved murder… What could possibly go wrong?

Jason Durr, whose name and face you'll recognise from "Heartbeat" plays Jonny "The Cyclops". It's the second time that I've seen Jason on stage, the previous time in "Cluedo 2" at the Nottingham Theatre Royal. Like that role, this is a comedy role; something quite different from his TV roles in "Heartbeat" and "Casualty". The voice sounds very similar to Harold Steptoe and the comedy is very fluent, bringing out a comedic ruthlessness in "The Cyclops".

This play turned out to be a lot funnier than I imagined it would be, which came as a really pleasant surprise. Every actor played a part in the comedy in the play, even in the banter of the police officers to start the play with set the tone. It's billed as a comedy thriller but I'd have classed it nearer to farce, mainly because of the outrageous silliness that developed as the play went on.

Susie Blake, who I loved as the sarcastic continuity announcer from the Victoria Wood TV shows, as well as several other theatre shows, such as the brilliantly funny "Handbagged" plays Shirley, the wonderfully scatty mother of Jonny. There were hints that the character may have had dementia, and while that in itself is far from funny, they are only hints but gave you immediately an image of where the author was heading with this character. Shirley could also have been a Ma Baker style character as we discover towards the end of the play. Superb comedy performance from Susie both via the script and physically.

Max Bowden you'll know from "Eastenders", but I saw last in the incredibly emotional "Birdsong" when it visited Nottingham, plays Paul, who we first see as a man of the cloth who has escorted Lisa home from a New Years Eve party. Another lovely comic role, in fact all of these characters are lovely comic roles, and while not really being a fan of "Eastenders", seeing Max play comedy, after seeing him last playing an emotional and serious part on stage, shows what a very versatile stage actor he is. I won't reveal who Paul really is as I don't want to give away any spoilers!

Katie McGlynn, who I know from "Coronation Street" plays Lisa, the intended one chosen by Jonny. It's odd how first visual impressions can be so wrong, especially when you see what Lisa is dressed in when she first appears on stage from the New Years Eve party that Paul has escorted her back from. Corrie is a wonderful place to whet an actor's comic skills, and the stage is where those skills can blossom, and Katie definitely blossomed. Torben Betts, the author, is certainly generous when writing comedy for his characters, and shares the lines out between all of them.

Callum Balmforth  plays Russell, or Coco as Jonny dubs him, due to the Pennywise clown mask he wears when he is first introduced into the play.

Peter Moreton plays Trainwreck, Jonny's sidekick who is one gun short of  an arsenal, and likes a sniff or two of white powder. There are some brilliant comic lines for Trainwreck, who also plays the audience for the sympathy vote right from the start. He may be tooled up but he ain't the sharpish tool in the box! 

Iryna Poplavska, who is making her theatrical UK debut in this play, is Cristina, the carer for Shirley, but why is this Romanian carer so nervy, and who is this Mr Fish that she is frantically trying to keep away from the property? 

Bella Farr and Andy McLeod  are the Police Officers that we see at the start of the play, investigating a multiple murder crime scene. Is it a coincidence this week that the three pieces of theatre I've seen up to yet this week, "Blood Brothers", "Evita" and this one all start at the end of the story with death scenes, after which we then get to see what led up to those deaths.

Directed by Phillip Franks, who knows a thing or two about comedy and comic timing, and demonstrates this in the direction of this play. Beautifully fast paced, and let's face it, with the number of one-liners and comedy, it has to be fast-paced to cram them all in, but still leaving breathing space for that comedy to be recognised and in some parts to grow as we are at times drip fed the comedy, such as in Shirley's role - you'll understand what I mean when you see it!

The play is quite new and makes me wonder if the Coldplay T shirt is used in the recent comedic episode at a Coldplay concert, or whether another band has also been used for comedy effect on the T shirt for the same play, but in earlier productions. Doesn't matter but is a clever side swipe and another gentle bit of ribbing, adding to the other more blatant comedy sections in the show.

Colin Falconer's set design is also clever using a three section piece of staging which shows the main downstairs kitchen/living room, Jonny's man cave complete with Robbie Williams giant mural, and the bedroom, all three sections on different levels. the outer area of the property is all referred to by the sound of Jonny's maniacal hounds, roaming somewhere near the pig pens - something else you find out about Jonny, which also plays a part in the story elsewhere in the play.

A lovely piece of theatrical farce which also has a very modern feel. It was lovely to hear some big belly laughs in parts from the audience who obviously enjoyed the silliness as much as I did. Torben Betts, a brilliant playwright, and another thing to thank one of my favourite writers and playwrights Alan Ayckbourn for; I won't explain why, look it up.

"Murder At Midnight" is at Derby Theatre until Saturday 13 September. It'd be a crime to miss out!