Afternoon at the Seaside
A light seaside mystery in one act
55 minutes
12
Synopsis
A whimsical day by the sea in a British resort. An emerald necklace has been stolen and the Inspector has to investigate an extraordinary mix of characters.
Play information
Location
The beach at Little-Slippyng-on-Sea.
Running time
55 minutes
Character list
- Number of male characters: 7
- Number of female characters: 5
- Bob Wheeler
- Noreen Somers
- Arthur Somers
- George Crum
- Mrs. Crum
- A Mother
- A Young Man
- Beach Attendant
- Mrs. Gunner
- Percy Gunner
- The Beauty
- Inspector Foley
More about this play
Afternoon at the Seaside deploys the same device as Christie used in her short story The Rajah's Emerald, where a stolen item is uncovered by someone with no idea where it came from.
It was first presented as part of Rule Of Three (which also features The Rats and The Patient) which toured the United Kingdom in 1961 and subsequently opened at the Duchess Theatre in the West End in 1962.
Afternoon at the Seaside is quite delightful in everyway. It is light, gay and amusing, but still has a twist at the end, and I had nostalgic memories of Spider’s Web. It was certainly the hit of the evening.
