The Other Side of Murder Review by Nina Jervis-Green

November 10, 2026

Thanks to Nina Jervis-Green from www.ninathewriter.com for this review.

If I had to describe The Other Side of Murder in one word, it would be “zippy”. With a running time of just under two hours (including the interval), you won’t stumble home after hours, mumbling apologies to the babysitter.

But “zippy” also suggests that this show moves fast, and so it does. The time is packed with lightning-quick twists and turns that promise to leave you delighted, surprised, and wrong-footed in equal measure.

This is the third of Torben Betts’ “murder” plays, again directed by Philip Franks and starring Susie Blake. But if you didn’t catch the other two (Murder in the Dark and Murder at Midnight) don’t worry, as each one is a standalone outing.

Here, Rufus Hound is perfectly cast as Peter Boggs, a dubious man of multi-faceted identity. His alter-ego, the spirit medium Darius Divine, is riding a fresh wave of publicity after a stint on Celebrity Big Brother. Peter’s focused, ambitious second wife, Susannah (the fabulous Carla Mendonça) is also his manager, and she’s just booked Darius a slot on primetime TV. Things are looking up.

We meet the couple in their swish middle-class home, strewn with Waitrose carrier bags, pendant lighting, and understated Farrow and Ball (the set, designed by Colin Falconer, is fantastic). They’re getting ready for a celebratory meal with Susannah’s mum, Miriam (a charmingly dotty Susie Blake) and Peter’s daughter, Jen (Maddy Banks), whom Peter hasn’t seen since she was a child.

There’s just one snag. Peter’s spurned, impoverished mistress, Laura (a fizzingly charismatic turn from Aisha Jawando) gatecrashes the preparations angrily demanding either his undying love, or £50k. Both are out of the question… but luckily for Peter, Susannah mistakes Laura for Sylvie, the French gourmet chef she’s hired to prepare their meal.

The ensuing sequence of events combine comedy, tragedy, confusion, shock, violence and redemption, though not necessarily in that order. Creative special effects, by illusions designer John Bulleid, keep tensions ramped up as the script deftly tackles a multitude of subjects at once: infidelity, grief, estrangement, the supernatural, ageing and menopause, the glaring differences between Peter’s and Laura’s lifestyles, and the poisons of social media and reality TV.

(Phew).

The show ends with a lingering sense that justice (of a kind) has been served, and while there are times when the story stretches credulity, it’s done in such an exhilarating way that you’re compelled to strap in, sit back, and enjoy the ride!