Janice Hallett

* THE CAST OF SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLING THE APPEAL RETURN FOR A FESTIVE MURDER MYSTERY *One dead Santa. A town full of suspects. Will you discover the truth?Christmas in Lower Lockwood, and the Fairway Players are busy rehearsing their festive pantomime, Jack and the Beanstalk, to raise money for the church roof appeal. But despite the season, goodwill is distinctly lacking amongst the amateur dramatics enthusiasts. Sarah-Jane is fending off threats to her new position as Chair, the fibreglass beanstalk might be full of asbestos, and a someone is intent on ruining the panto even before the curtain goes up.Of course there's also the matter of the dead body. Who could possibly have had the victim on their naughty list? Join lawyers Femi and Charlotte as they read the round robins, examine the emails and pore over the police transcripts. Will the show go on?

The Christmas Appeal

Laura Dobie

I need to sweet-talk the vicar into removing a stud wall behind the stage to make room for the beanstalk. It's enormous, is over forty years old and has been in countless pantos, but it's by far the best beanstalk in the local area. We need a good, sturdy stem for Jack to climb up. When you can clearly see that a group has cobbled a beanstalk together and Jack mimes climbing it, well, the story loses all credibility for me.

The Grange Estate is on the other side of the big Tesco, and most people there don't have cars or much interest in theatre. Celia

Finally, a reminder of the good cause that will benefit from this fundraising production. The church hall in Lockwood is where The Fairway Players have staged their plays for nearly forty years. It is our home. This spring it was discovered that a family of bats had inadvertently wreaked havoc when their urine and feces built up in a roof cavity, which was damp from a water leak the previous spring. This perfect storm nurtured a destructive fungus that ate the wooden beams. The hall had to be closed for two weeks while the bats were humanely evicted, a giant patty of petrified dung was cut out and the damage patched up.

The Christmas Appeal quotes

Join the club