STAGE REVIEW: The Final Curtain - at the Festival Theatre, Malvern, from Monday, May 21, to Saturday, May 26, 2018.

WHAT do you expect and what do you want when you are confronted by a Sherlock Holmes adventure?

A story that is gripping, methodical and thoughtful, yet with slightly eccentric characters, and a few surprises on the way to the tale’s conclusion with one considerably unexpected twist?

Thankfully that’s exactly what’s provided in this excellent new play from the Theatre Royal Bath and Kenny Wax which is now on a world premiere tour and knows just how much of the crucial entertainment factor needs to be spread…

This has it by the bucket-load as we see Holmes heading into his dotage some 30 years on from when he saw off his arch enemy, Professor Moriarty, who died after their tussle on the edge of the Reichenbach Falls in Switzerland.

Holmes, played in a splendidly under-stated manner by screen and stage veteran Robert Powell, has supposedly retired to the south coast yet still hankering for a spot of sleuthing, the adrenaline rush of some danger and excitement.

A solitary life of fly-fishing, occasionally writing, and even bee-keeping needs a little spark so when a suspicious death occurs on the doorstep - allied to the possible ‘return’ of his nemesis, adds more than a little sting to the proceedings!

Powell looks totally at home (or should that be ‘Holmes’?), in the part - wearing the mantle of Sherlock and his famous smoking jacket-cum-dressing gown impeccably.

Polished and immensely professional throughout, it’s a part that has possibly been waiting for him, and there was tremendous support from others too who transported us back with ease to the early 1920s and the inner recesses of 221B Baker Street.

Captivating performances too with Timothy Kightley’s occasionally befuddled Dr Watson, the elegant Liza Goddard’s manipulative Mrs Watson and a quality cameo from Roy Sampson as Holmes’ elder brother, Mycroft.

In the main a very experienced cast and their quality easily shone through.

Well done too to designer Jonathan Fensom for his authentic and first class set and its subtle changes which appeared with great regularity from behind a moving curtain gliding across the stage.

Simon Reade’s new play, with due deference to Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, ensures the spirit of Holmes lives on.

It’s a story well told of our fictional super sleuth desperately seeking his ‘final curtain’ before possibly hanging up his magnifying glass for good.

A body on the private beach at his hideaway home sets us off in pursuit of all the answers that Holmes and Watson can deduce from the clues.

Overall a rattling good yarn of twists and turns, with a spot of the supernatural thrown in for good measure - acknowledging Conan Doyle’s beliefs in the spirit world.

It’s neatly relayed, substantially compact at just under two hours duration, and it doesn’t take much to detect that this is going to continue to be a successful production on its UK tour.

A warm welcome back from retirement Sherlock…