Agatha Christie was a mystery writer known mainly for her novels, featuring characters such as Hercule Poirot and Miss Marple. But she adapted her short story Three Blind Mice for the theatre, and renamed it The Mousetrap (a reference to Shakespeare's Hamlet) on the advice of her son-in-law.
Its first performance in London was at the Ambassadors Theatre (it moved to St Martin's Theatre in 1974 to accommodate a larger audience) and featured two established West End stars, Richard Attenborough and Sheila Sims. But Christie had misgivings about its longevity. Her first producer, Peter Saunders, reportedly gave it 14 months, which Christie herself thought optimistic: “Eight months, perhaps. Yes, I think eight months”.
After less than six years, however, it became the longest-running show in the history of British theatre, a record it has held ever since. Almost 70 years on, the play could fairly be described as a British institution.
Subscribe to MoneyWeek
Subscribe to MoneyWeek today and get your first six magazine issues absolutely FREE
Sign up to Money Morning
Don't miss the latest investment and personal finances news, market analysis, plus money-saving tips with our free twice-daily newsletter
Don't miss the latest investment and personal finances news, market analysis, plus money-saving tips with our free twice-daily newsletter
Considering that few star actors have appeared in it since the 1952 cast, and given the lukewarm critical reception it received upon its opening (one critic called it “a middling piece”), it's something of a wonder how it has enjoyed such untouchable status over the years. The plot itself is classic Christie: set in an English manor, and with a final twist, which, though its audiences are encouraged not to disclose it upon leaving the theatre, would leave few discerning Christie fans surprised.
But there is doubtless something comforting and enchanting about the play's continued and undeniable ability to delight audiences and attract intrigued tourists, and it would be a brave producer who would take it off the West End now. However, on 16 March 2020, after over 28,000 performances, its unbroken run was halted by the UK's nationwide lockdown.
-
Shein shifts IPO focus to Hong KongThe development piles fresh pressure on London’s beleaguered stock market, which many had hoped would be boosted by Shein’s IPO
-
Scientists turn lead into gold – could it wreck the yellow metal's price?Medieval alchemists have been vindicated after scientists turned lead into gold, but the results aren’t going to crash the gold price any time soon
-
31 August 1957: the Federation of Malaya declares independence from the UKFeatures On this day in 1957, after ten years of preparation, the Federation of Malaya became an independent nation.
-
13 April 1960: the first satellite navigation system is launchedFeatures On this day in 1960, Nasa sent the Transit 1B satellite into orbit to provide positioning for the US Navy’s fleet of Polaris ballistic missile submarines.
-
9 April 1838: National Gallery opens in Trafalgar SquareFeatures On this day in 1838, William Wilkins’ new National Gallery building in Trafalgar Square opened to the public.
-
3 March 1962: British Antarctic Territory is createdFeatures On this day in 1962, Britain formed the British Antarctic Territory administered from the Falkland Islands.
-
10 March 2000: the dotcom bubble peaks
Features Tech mania fanned by the dawning of the internet age inflated the dotcom bubble to maximum extent, on this day in 2000.
-
9 March 1776: Adam Smith publishes 'The Wealth of Nations'
Features On this day in 1776, Adam Smith, the “father of modern economics”, published his hugely influential book The Wealth of Nations.
-
8 March 1817: the New York Stock Exchange is formedFeatures On this day in 1817, a group of brokers moved out of a New York coffee house to form what would become the biggest stock exchange in the world.
-
7 March 1969: Queen Elizabeth II officially opens the Victoria Line
Features On this day in 1969, Queen Elizabeth II took only her second trip on the tube to officially open the underground’s newest line – the Victoria Line.
