A Shoddy Detective and the Art of Deception - McIntosh at Gilded Balloon at Appleton Tower - Edinburgh Fringe Review

A painting goes missing during an auction at a grand manor house. The Lord and Lady of the house are desperate for the piece to be returned, the guests are intervening, the maid is the font of all knowledge when it comes to household gossip, and the gardeners, well they just live in their own little world. It is up to Detective Stuart Pidcock and his sidekick Dusty Wills, who used to be a criminal himself, to solve the puzzle of the missing painting.

‘A Shoddy Detective and the Art of Deception’ comes to McInstosh at Gilded Balloon at Appleton Tower following a UK Tour, with its cast of four playing multiple roles in an hour of chaotic crime solving, twists and turns and hilarious characters.

Neil Jennings plays Detective Stuart Pidcock, brought to the manor to find the missing painting but forced to work alongside his former nemesis, criminal turned detective Dusty Mills, played by Wesley Griffith. The pair tease and wind each other up, bickering over who will be good cop and who will be bad, arguing over the best way to get information out of their witnesses and waring over who will be the one to ultimately solve the crime, all with brilliantly funny results. Jennings plays Pidcock as bumbling and stuttering, caught off guard by pretty witnesses and easily led by the more confident Dusty, whilst Griffith’s detective is the cool guy, slick and charming, creating a clever and funny dynamic as they bounce off of each other.

Becky Bertram and Mitch Donaldson play Lord and Lady Rayburn, alongside a multitude of different characters, including gardeners, maids and house guests, all of which play a pivotal role in the detective’s investigation, each bringing a new kind of chaos to the proceedings. Both Bertram and Donaldson skip quickly and skilfully between characters in short amounts of time, keeping the action moving along at a fast and pleasant place as the pair earn many a big laugh throughout.

The jokes come thick and fast, ranging from slapstick and wordplay to some very brazen innuendos and characters in compromising positions. This is a cheeky, at times rather naughty, comedy that whilst it may not be family friendly as such, is guaranteed to raise many a laugh from most, older teenagers and adults alike.

The comedy doesn’t take itself too seriously, playing on the audience reactions, but the story of the crime is just as clever as those you would find in more serious mysteries. The stories weaved by each witness that is pieced together by the waring detectives Pidcock and Wills will keep you guessing until the last moments when the secrets are all revealed.

‘A Shoddy Detective and the Art of Deception’ is incredibly funny, cheeky and all together entertaining, a rapidly paced whodunnit that leaves audiences guessing and questioning is everyone who they seem to be from beginning to end.

This production runs at McIntosh at Gilded Balloon at Appleton Tower at 16.00 until 24^th August.