You could smell the poppy essential oils emanating from the programme, you could catch a whiff of the fresh coffee on the stage and you could hear a pin drop.

It was a quiet start to Trowbridge Player’s Strictly Murder last week, but nonetheless intriguing.

It created the ambience for a murky tale set against the background threat of war breaking out, from the pen of the man who created TV’s iconic The Avengers and The Professionals.

Suspicious minds were echoed by the characters.

The year is 1939 and Suzy and Peter are living in a remote part of France. An odd stranger arrives on the scene and a murder lurks.

The references to the ’30s were delightful; the front door that was never locked, the ‘bastard’ child conceived before marriage, the swig of brandy by a pregnant mother, untainted by the days of health and safety, and an innocent woman seemingly left in the dark by her future husband.

There was humour too. Stephen Kebbell played Peter brilliantly and his double-entendres in a scene involving red wine laced with rat poison were fantastic.

This was his biggest role yet with the Players and he is one to watch out for.

The stage was used well and the one setting never became boring. Credit must go to director David Seaman, not only for his first directing role but also for designing and building most of the set.

A slow first half was overshadowed by a quick turn of events later.

The plot thickened, and Becky Holden’s Suzy was finally given a more meaty role, as a gun-wielding pregnant woman.

Another star of the show was Clive Greaves, who played the role of Josef, a disturbed neighbour.

His lines were brief, but expertly played. This slightly odd creature was the hero of the day.

A powerful ending with a gun shot rocked the audience.