Death on the Nile, UK Tour Review (2025)
Written by Thomas for Theatre & Tonic
Disclaimer: Gifted tickets in exchange for an honest review
The Lowry, completed at the turn of the millennium as part of a larger development project for Salford Docks, is a hive of activity where contemporary performance meets creative expression. Inside, visitors can explore a rich program of events, including captivating theatre, dynamic dance shows, and excellent exhibitions. Showcasing both renowned artists and rising stars, the venue offers a platform for diverse voices and innovative work. With a strong focus on accessibility and community involvement, The Lowry invites audiences from all walks of life to engage with the arts, making it a welcoming space for creative discovery and connection.
Agatha Christie is known worldwide as the Queen of Crime. Her books have sold more than a billion copies in English, with an additional billion translated into other languages. She holds the record of being the most widely published author in history, surpassed in sales in many languages only by the Bible and the works of Shakespeare. Her body of work includes 66 detective novels, over 150 short stories, more than 25 plays, and 6 novels published under the pseudonym Mary Westmacott. Her most notable works include Murder on the Orient Express, Death on the Nile, and And Then There Were None.
The play follows Christie’s most successful character, detective Hercule Poirot (Mark Hadfield), on a Nile River cruise when a wealthy heiress, Linnet Ridgeway Doyle (Libby Alexandra-Cooper), is found murdered. Tensions rise as it’s revealed that many passengers had motives — jealousy, betrayal, and greed. Poirot investigates and uncovers that Linnet’s husband, Simon Doyle (Nye Occomore), and his ex-fiancée, Jacqueline de Bellefort (Esme Hough), plotted the murder together to inherit Linnet’s fortune. Poirot exposes the crime in classic Christie fashion, bringing justice to a carefully staged deception.
This production reunites the spectacular pairing of writer/adaptor Ken Ludwig and director Lucy Bailey, both of whom worked on the sell-out tour of Murder on the Orient Express. This dream team, along with the design team including Mike Britton on set, Oliver Fenwick on lighting and Mic Pool on sound, have adapted this book from story to set to stage excellently. This production brilliantly blends these aspects of design to create a sensory delight. The grand set design, consisting of sliding doors, walls and panels, cruise ship railings and a multi-level set, especially when moving, creates an immersive experience and a real sense of grandeur. Movement supervisor Liam Steel cleverly curates the traffic of the cast and the choreography of moving smaller pieces of the set furniture to mask the necessity of this moving set for smooth scene transitions.
While this version is still great, it is noticeable that from the original, the presence of some characters has been altered, enlarging roles, curtailing others and creating new roles altogether to make it work for the stage. There have been some additional scenes created for dramatic effect that also weren’t in the original. Which begs the question, how relevant is the original story in today’s society? Or, was this just Ludwig trying to breathe new life into this production, while still honouring the original?
The show has a strong ensemble company led by Hadfield playing the kooky detective and narrator very well. Unfortunately, during the denouncement, he stumbled over a number of his lines, disconnecting us from the scene and bringing us back to reality. Other than that very small hiccup, this show is great!
Death on the Nile embarks on a UK tour until 23 May 2026
★★★★
