The poster for the 75th Anniversary Tour of Agatha Christie’s The Mousetrap, playing Grand Opera House, York, next summer
THE world’s longest-running play, Agatha Christie’s thriller The Mousetrap, will return to the Grand Opera House, York, from June 21 to 26 2027 on its 75th Anniversary Tour.
Christie’s iconic play first played the Cumberland Street theatre on the Diamond Anniversary Tour when the mouse first escaped its London trap in 2013 and last visited York in March 2023 on its 70th anniversary travels.
Producer Brian Fenty has announced that Nicholas Bailey and Susan Penhaligon will star as Major Metcalf and Mrs Boyle respectively in Christie’s 1952 murder mystery, famed for its silent clues, shifting shadows and the best-kept secret in theatre history. Watch this space for news of further casting and the creative team.
Nicholas Bailey: Cast as Major Metcalf in 75th Anniversary Tour of Agatha Christie’s The Mousetrap
A shocking murder rattles London. Far from the chaos, a remote country guesthouse welcomes seven strangers seeking refuge, but when a police sergeant battles through a deadly snowstorm with a warning no-one expects, it becomes clear the threat is already within their walls.
Every whisper hides a clue, every story masks a lie, and as suspicion tightens its grip, one question chills the room: who among them is capable of murder?
Nicholas Bailey is best known for his portrayal of Dr Anthony Trueman in BBC One’s EastEnders since 2000, returning to the role on several occasions, most recently in 2025.
The 2023 cast for Agatha Christie’s The Mousetrap on its last visit to the Grand Opera House, York
Bailey has enjoyed a varied career across stage, screen and radio. His theatre credits include Richard Eyre’s King Lear (National Theatre), Macbeth (Mercury Theatre, Colchester), Dreamgirls (West End), Jackie – The Musical (UK tour), Mother Courage And Her Children (UK tour), Life Is A Dream (Royal Lyceum, Edinburgh, Barbican Centre and BAM, New York) and Julius Caesar (Royal Exchange).
His television credits include Coronation Street, Casualty, Doctors, Death In Paradise, House Of Anubis and Holby City and he played Carl Lawrence in BBC Radio 4’s long-running rural drama The Archers from 2012.
Susan Penhaligon first came to prominence in the landmark television drama Bouquet Of Barbed Wire drama before becoming a household name as Helen Barker, younger sister to Dame Judi Dench’s linguist Laura Dalton in the ITV sitcom A Fine Romance from 1981 to 1984.
Susan Penhaligon: Cast as the volatile Mrs Boyle in the 75th Anniversary Tour of Agatha Christie’s The Mousetrap
Her television credits include Emmerdale, Doctors, Casualty, Bergerac, Doctor Who, Upstairs, Downstairs and the BBC’s adaptation of Dracula.
Penhaligon has appeared extensively on stage in the West End and across the UK, with credits including The Real Thing (Strand Theatre), Three Sisters (Albery Theatre), Of Mice and Men (Mermaid Theatre), Broken Glass (West Yorkshire Playhouse) and UK tours of Cabaret, The Importance Of Being Earnest, And Then There Were None and Fisherman’s Friends – The Musical. Her film work includes The Land That Time Forgot, Patrick, Count Dracula, Soldier of Orange and The Uncanny.
She last appeared on the York stage in April-May 2019 in Moira Buffini’s political drama Handbagged, playing The Queen (Elizabeth II) opposite Sarah Crowden’s Margaret Thatcher, at York Theatre Royal.
Susan Penhaligon as The Queen, with Sarah Crowden as Margaret Thatcher, in Handbagged at York Theatre Royal in 2019
For the chance to Step into Monkswell Manor and solve the great British murder mystery that has kept the world guessing for generations, tickets are on sale at atgtickets.com/york.
Did you know?
On March 19 2025, The Mousetrap celebrated its 30,000th performance in the West End and was presented with a Guinness World Records certificate for the world’s longest theatrical run.
Sharing its name with the play within the play in Shakespeare’s Hamlet, Agatha Christie’s murder mystery opened in 1952 and continues to enthral audiences at London’s St Martin’s Theatre, now booking into its 75th year in 2027.