Janet C. Smith's Blog
October 8, 2025
'Manifesto for Murder'. Murder Mystery. Merstham Amateur Dramatic Society (MADS)
Break a Leg to Merstham Amateur Dramatic Society (MADS), for their production of the murder mystery ‘Manifesto for Murder’ at Merstham Village Hall, Wednesday 22nd to Friday 24th October. For tickets £10, see online info.
'It’s election time in Smallbury, where the incumbent Independent MP has reigned for ten years. The arrival of a challenger stirs up sediment in the community, and one character will be permanently voted out!' After the stage play, the suspects submit to audience interrogation. Can they work out who dun-it?
'It’s election time in Smallbury, where the incumbent Independent MP has reigned for ten years. The arrival of a challenger stirs up sediment in the community, and one character will be permanently voted out!' After the stage play, the suspects submit to audience interrogation. Can they work out who dun-it?
October 7, 2025
'Murder in the Library'. Murder Mystery. St John the Baptist Harvest Supper Players, Ockley.
Good Luck to St John the Baptist Harvest Supper Players, Ockley, who are performing ‘Murder in the Library’ Friday 23rd at Ockley Village Hall, and Saturday 24th October at Capel Memorial Hall. Tickets £17.50 and children £9, for the staged murder mystery, which includes a yummy two course Harvest Supper. For tickets see online info.
‘A new library manager is sweeping clean with her new broom, but trouble is accumulating under the carpet, where tensions between her and regular staff run high, and the security guard is earning a little extra income on the side. A visiting artist, a poet, and other library visitors add to the potent mix, that will lead to murder. Can the audience work out who dun-it?
‘A new library manager is sweeping clean with her new broom, but trouble is accumulating under the carpet, where tensions between her and regular staff run high, and the security guard is earning a little extra income on the side. A visiting artist, a poet, and other library visitors add to the potent mix, that will lead to murder. Can the audience work out who dun-it?
October 3, 2025
New Script. 'Aladdin and his Magic Lamp.' A panto style murder mystery. Scripts for Stage.
New script 'Aladdin and his Magic Lamp', a panto style murder mystery now available to licence from Scripts for Stage. Free to read online; a small fee to download; and a modest licence fee to perform.
'Obtaining the magic lamp for his wicked uncle, leads Aladdin on a journey of adventure, love and murder!' The script takes the form of a 60 minute play, followed by audience interrogation to discover whodunit. 2F 3M 7E. Lots of fun, jokes, singing and dancing.
'Obtaining the magic lamp for his wicked uncle, leads Aladdin on a journey of adventure, love and murder!' The script takes the form of a 60 minute play, followed by audience interrogation to discover whodunit. 2F 3M 7E. Lots of fun, jokes, singing and dancing.
September 10, 2025
'Gritta and the Witches of Olavland'
Among (or is it amongst?) the best prices for 'Gritta and the Witches of Olavland' paperback is from Amazon at £8. Free delivery on Saturday 13th September for orders over £10. Link
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Gritta-Witch...
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Gritta-Witch...
August 20, 2025
One Act Play Festivals. One Act Comedy 'Climbing Kilimanjaro''
A fun short one act play, set during the Coronavirus pandemic lockdown. Greg is looking for a challenge, Chrissie is obsessed with disinfecting, Leoni wants a commitment from Mark, but Mark is happy with things as they are. Things are about to be shaken up, when Greg embarks on climbing the equivalent of Mount Kilimanjaro in the national domestic ‘Stair Climb Challenge.’ (2M, 2F.) Ideal for One Act Play Festivals. For sample script https://stage-write.com.au/start-brow...
July 29, 2025
'Investigations of a Dog' Franz Kafka
I'd never heard of 'Investigations of a Dog' by Franz Kafka until I stumbled upon it in a garage sale. Suspiciously clean and with pages tightly furled, as if unread, I shortly afterwards discovered why. It really is nonsense!
Kafka is famed for writing 'The Trial' and 'Metamorphosis', both brilliantly creative works. Whilst 'Investigations of a Dog' is creative, this slim book feels as if the author was struggling to create something new, but hadn't got a handle on it, and essentially, was writing for writing's sake.
Published posthumously, when anything Kafkaesque would have been published, even a shopping list, it's an example of how publishers can mar an authors excellent reputation by greed. If it wasn't published in Kafka's lifetime, there was a reason for it!
The blurb on the back jacket reads 'How does a dog see the world? How do any of us? In this playful and enigmatic story of a canine philosopher, Kafka explores the limits of knowledge.' Hmmm.
Perhaps when all's said and done, it is a pre-curser of 'Dogman'.
Kafka is famed for writing 'The Trial' and 'Metamorphosis', both brilliantly creative works. Whilst 'Investigations of a Dog' is creative, this slim book feels as if the author was struggling to create something new, but hadn't got a handle on it, and essentially, was writing for writing's sake.
Published posthumously, when anything Kafkaesque would have been published, even a shopping list, it's an example of how publishers can mar an authors excellent reputation by greed. If it wasn't published in Kafka's lifetime, there was a reason for it!
The blurb on the back jacket reads 'How does a dog see the world? How do any of us? In this playful and enigmatic story of a canine philosopher, Kafka explores the limits of knowledge.' Hmmm.
Perhaps when all's said and done, it is a pre-curser of 'Dogman'.
July 1, 2025
'Murder Anybody?'. Murder Mystery. Hockwold Amateur Theatrical Society.
Good Luck to Hockwold Amateur Theatrical Society, Norfolk, who are performing ‘Murder Anybody?’ at Hockwold Village Hall on Saturday 5th July at 7.30pm. Ticket price of £12 includes a welcome soft drink, main course and desert. A snip! Bring own booze and nibbles if required.
‘A serial businessman and his wife fake his death for the life insurance money and to escape creditors. Now he’s in hiding, waiting to flee the country with his wife. But things aren’t going to plan, and without any body, everybody has a motive for murder!’ Can the audience work out who dun-it?
‘A serial businessman and his wife fake his death for the life insurance money and to escape creditors. Now he’s in hiding, waiting to flee the country with his wife. But things aren’t going to plan, and without any body, everybody has a motive for murder!’ Can the audience work out who dun-it?
June 14, 2025
Murder Mystery. 'Murder at Cliff House'. Welford Amateur Dramatic Society. Northants.
Break a leg to Welford Amateur Dramatic Society, Northants, who are performing the murder mystery ‘Murder at Cliff House’ on Friday 27th and Saturday 28th June. For Saturday audiences there is also a hog roast.
‘A group of internet book influencers receive invitations for a weekend away by a new publishing house. But who is the mystery author, and where is the mystery publisher? In a decaying old mansion perched on a crumbling cliff, surrounded by a treacherous sea fog, the guests bicker and backbite. Before the end of the story, one character will be deleted!’ Can the audience work out who dun-it?
‘A group of internet book influencers receive invitations for a weekend away by a new publishing house. But who is the mystery author, and where is the mystery publisher? In a decaying old mansion perched on a crumbling cliff, surrounded by a treacherous sea fog, the guests bicker and backbite. Before the end of the story, one character will be deleted!’ Can the audience work out who dun-it?
May 22, 2025
One Thing I've Learned Today. Recyclable coffee cups. Small print.
For how many years have plastic cups been replaced by paper cups, by businesses selling soft drinks, such as coffee and tea? Like everyone else, I thought that they were all recycled, and how super. But one thing I learned today, is that nothing is straight forward, particularly in the world of recycling. Idly reading small print on the side of my Costa coffee cup on the train, I discovered that to recycle it, it had to be returned to a coffee shop, or taken to a recycling centre. What? So it can't be dropped into a recycling bin in the town, or the railway station, or even carried home to put in the home bin? Another time, another coffee later, at Greggs this time, one clear plastic bin bag was full of paper cups, paper bags and cans, but bizarrely, a notice above the bin, informed customers that if they wanted their items recycled, they should hand them in at the counter! So, a tad embarrassed I did just that, alone with my empty cup, in a queue of people waiting for food and drink. But.....
......All this is about to, or has changed in England since March '25 when 'Simpler Recycling' regulations were introduced, and businesses with more than 10 employees required to separate waste into four categories; residual waste, food waste, paper and card, and all other dry recyclables (plastics, metal and glass.) Businesses with less than 10 employees can manage as best they can until March 31, 2027, to comply. So if you want to save the world, and you're in a coffee shop with more than 10 employees, and they haven't got their new bins yet, queue up at the counter.
......All this is about to, or has changed in England since March '25 when 'Simpler Recycling' regulations were introduced, and businesses with more than 10 employees required to separate waste into four categories; residual waste, food waste, paper and card, and all other dry recyclables (plastics, metal and glass.) Businesses with less than 10 employees can manage as best they can until March 31, 2027, to comply. So if you want to save the world, and you're in a coffee shop with more than 10 employees, and they haven't got their new bins yet, queue up at the counter.
May 7, 2025
Richard Thompson. 'Beeswing'.
Co-founder of Fairport Convention, Richard Thompson's folk rock personal memoir of the years 1967-1975 'Beeswing', published by Faber and Faber in 1921, is an engrossing and well written read, whether one is into folk or not, and whether one was wearing a mini skirt or kipper tie at the time or not. Not quite on the same literary plane as 'Chronicles' by Bob Dylan, who is after all a Nobel Laureate, but pretty darned good.
