Death at the Playhouses: Lowe and Le Breton Mysteries

Lowe and Le Breton Mysteries #2

by Stuart Douglas

A second witty, fun, 1970s-set whodunnit in the Lowe and Le Breton mysteries series, featuring two ageing actors attempting to solve a murder after their famous co-star is found dead in a doorway outside the theatre in which they’re performing. Nostalgic cosy crime that’s perfect for fans of The Thursday Murder Club and Death & Croissants.

It’s 1971 and, in between filming seasons of Floggit and Leggit, ageing actors Edward Lowe and John Le Breton sign up for a short run of Shakespearean tragedies at the Bolton Playhouse. But, once in Lancashire, they discover they have been invited to join the theatre’s repertory company for two reasons – because the company manager is keen to take advantage of the publicity surrounding their successful BBC comedy series, and because Sir Nathaniel Thompson, the much-lauded star of the show and knight of the realm, has been sacked for drunkenness.

John fears an awkward scene, should Thompson – who he knew during the war – return to reclaim his job, but when the great actor’s body is found, bludgeoned to death in a nearby alleyway, the unlikely crime-solving duo find themselves investigating another fiendish mystery that takes them from the northwest of England to the Netherlands, and which, rather inconveniently, seems to have John’s ex-wife Sally at its heart.

Death at the Playhouses is the second in The Lowe and Le Breton Mysteries series.

Genres: Mystery

463 pages, Kindle Edition

First published March 18, 2025

About the author

Author of The Lowe and Le Breton Mysteries.

Reviews

[Sandy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Quite an elaborate plot but all hanging threads are neatly tied up. I really like the detecting duo and their relationship.

[Alexander Smith · Rating 4 out of 5]

Entertaining, mostly. There are one or two things though, that jar with me. Firstly, like this novel its predecessor is a whodunnit; the entire thrust of the plot is to identify a murderer. In this novel, that murderer's name is mentioned again and again. This presumes the reader will have read the novels in order! (Mind you, even Agatha Christie let the cat out of the bag in this way in a couple of her novels!) Secondly, there is a major glitch in the internal continuity of this novel: it's 1971, and John is 67-yrs-old.Presumably he was born in 1904. But in a flashback chapter, headed 1936, detailing John's first meeting with his soon-to-be-wife Sally, John thinks back on his love-life. '...and rather a lot of one-night dalliances with ladies of easy and quite reasonably priced virtue in Cairo DURING THE WAR.' (My capitals.) Is he referring to the First World War? If so, between the ages of 10 and 14, John was in Cairo, and paying women for sex? I don't think so! But he can't be referring to the Second World War, because that hasn't happened yet. (Later in the novel it is confirmed that John did, indeed, serve in the British Army in Egypt during WW 2, but he was married to Sally at that time and there is no mention of any infidelity on John's part.) However, the characters are a joy, based as they are on the characters from the BBC's 'Dad's Army': ie, Captain Mainwaring (pronounced 'Mannering'), played on tv by Arthur Lowe, becomes Edward Lowe, Sergeant Wilson, played by John Le Mesurier becomes John Le Breton, Private Pike, played by Ian Lavender, is Police Sergeant Primrose. and so on. And it's an intriguing mystery to boot! I'm looking forward to the next in this series!

[Leona · Rating 5 out of 5]

The second in this series is an absolute joy. Douglas has delivered a delightful mystery with convivial characters who reel you in page by page into their madcap world of acting and murder. With, of course, a nod and a wink to certain actors of the small screen which brings a bit of merriment into a deary day.

I was pleased that a friend had initially recommended the Lowe & Le Breton Mysteries as not only is the writing splendid but when you turn that last page you are left with an overall satisfying feeling of being entertained. I really hope Douglas continues to come up with more adventures for our clumsy crime fighting heroes as they are wonderful.

I received an early copy from the publishers via NetGalley in exchange for a review.

[Kara Dennison · Rating 5 out of 5]

The first Lowe and Le Breton mystery was an absolute delight, even for viewers unaware of its heavy Dad's Army inspiration. Laced with references that will register whether you're a Brit of a certain age or an American raised on late-night PBS programming, Death at the Playhouses broadens the world of Lowe and Le Breton even further. The two have grown beyond their inspirations, already becoming two of the great amateur sleuths of the 21st century (and, in a way, the 20th). Two books is not enough for this pair. While Lowe and Le Breton themselves might fancy fewer brushes with death, readers will absolutely want more.

[Jon Arnold · Rating 5 out of 5]

If anything, even more of a delight than the first. Thoroughly evocative of the ever more alien world of fifty years ago with grease dripping from the walls and Rothmans as the only air freshener, and with a pair of leading men whose company’s a pleasure to spend some companionable hours in. All that’s allied to a pleasantly twisting and ingenious plot that puts our heroes through the old wringer a few times.

Fresh enough to never be dull and familiar enough that Lowe and Le Breton feel like old friends already, hopefully there’s further adventures to follow.

[Suzi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Aging thespians turn detectives to solve a murder. The second in the series, but reads as a stand alone.
Set in 1970s Bolton and the Netherlands a fun read.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for my copy in exchange for my review.

[Verity W · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really enjoyed the first book in this series, and was looking forward to more from Lowe and Le Breton. And this is fun - but it's a bit over long and there's one big continuity mistake (or at least confusion in the chronology) that really lifted me out of the story. But I continue to like the characters and will read a third in the series should it materialise.