BATH-based theatre company, New Old Friends, made a triumphant return to the city with their latest production, Crimes on the Nile, at the end of a five-month national tour.

 I first reviewed the play back in January when they opened at the Ustinov in Bath with their new comedy thriller prior to taking it onto a 24-venue tour.

The company have returned to the main house at the Theatre Royal for two nights on May 19 and 20 with their hilariously inventive comedy thriller based on Agatha Christie’s novel Death on the Nile.

If anything, the obvious jokes, the slapstick, the witty one-liners and the double entendres are even better than I remember from the first time around.

Belgian detective extraordinaire, Artemis Arinae, excellently played by Kirsty Cox, is set to enjoy a holiday cruise along the River Nile when tragedy strikes once more.

All the passengers and staff aboard are suspects, and the murder count is growing, but will Arinae’s little grey cells identify the murderer in time?

Four hyperactive actors, led by company founder Feargus Woods Dunlop and his wife and co-founder Heather Westwell, work at breakneck speed to convey the intricate plot and their timing is immaculate throughout.

In the many film versions, a whole cast of famous names, including Peter Ustinov, Bette Davis, Mia Farrow, Angela Lansbury, Maggie Smith, Simon MacCorkindale, David Niven and George Kennedy have been among those playing the leading roles.

They are ably assisted by Cox and Fergus Leathem and between them play all 12 characters in this cleverly complex whodunnit comic caper. If you missed the tour, you missed a treat.