Love food? Enjoy the theatre? Partial to a good old murder mystery? The Murder Express has it all!
Last week, I teamed up with Funicular Productions and was invited down to Pedley Street station in London’s East End for a trip on The Murder Express. Part immersive theatre, part dining experience, the Murder Express transports guests back to the 1800’s onboard a glamorous train, where you’ll be served a menu created by BBC One’s MasterChef 2016 Finalists Billy and Jack.
Our experience began at 3:30pm and I would advise people not to arrive too early as the doors do not open until this time. As we made our way through the entrance, we were provided with our boarding tickets to the fictional town of Murder, France. From the moment you arrive on the platform, you are transported to 19th century London and are slowly introduced to the characters as a drunken wheeler-dealer named Frank stumbles in. Characters including Vera the widow, Tilly the ex-wife, and the love struck waiter Cliff all make an appearance as customers mingle and sip on their cocktails, served at the station’s Seven Sins Bar.
The conductor arrived instructing us to board the train and we were shown our seats for the evening in a classic luxury dining carriage, fitted with leather booths and period style table lamps. Although the train doesn’t actually move, LCD windows show footage shot on a heritage steam railway in the Welsh Highlands, creating the illusion of a grand journey.
Once on the train, the characters continue to interact with you, sitting next to you in the booths and making conversation. This is what truly makes the experience different from a traditional night at the theatre. It makes you feel like you are part of the performance and is a lot more ‘real’. Plus, as they are constantly improvising depending on the kind of guests they have on board, you will never see the same show twice!
As the night unfolds, you find out the characters’ back stories and their connections to one another and try to piece together the events that led to one of their deaths. As the plot thickens, people’s motives are revealed, leading to a finale with its own unique twist.
Amongst the drama, you’ll be able to tuck into one of the nicest meals I have ever had, created and cooked as mentioned, by Billy and Jack from Masterchef 2016. For starters, we were served a spicy mulligatawny soup with a mini Indian spiced open cucumber sandwich that accompanied the dish. The soup was incredible, (coming a very close second to my Mam’s homemade soup!). Apparently, Heinz replicates it in a tin but I’m afraid to buy it as I know it won’t be the same and I don’t want it to ruin my memory of it! For our main course, we were served a generous portion of Butler’s steak, potato dauphinoise, and savoy cabbage. Again, this was another sensational course. Finally, to finish, we had apple tart with a scoop of ice cream.
This was a really enjoyable evening out. The only thing I would suggest, is that you do your research on what Murder Mysteries are. I had never been to a murder mystery event before and was surprised at how comical it was. It was quite lighthearted and included some slapstick which I wasn’t expecting at all – I thought it would be a serious drama! Because of this, it took me a while to truly get into it, but once I became more familiar with the genre, I thoroughly enjoyed it.
If you are looking for something different to do on an evening, and are a fan of Murder Mysteries and amazing food – then this is right up your street! For more info on how to book, check out their website: The Murder Express
Disclaimer
* I received complimentary tickets to review this experience
Wow, I see that you had good time guys 😉
Very well written! Looks like an amazing experience! I would love to go there once.
Found the story very interesting and graphically described. Would make a great team bonding excercise