Several months ago my best mate H and I went to a 1920’s Murder Mystery in our local town. Now, we are no strangers to dressing up and playing along and we had a marvellous time as two flapper girls. If you missed it, read all about it here
Deco Darlings
Fast forward several months and H surprised me with an invitation to a Togas and Tiaras Murder Mystery taking place in Herfordshire.
This time it would be an overnight hotel stay with bed and breakfast!
It was also between our two birthdays so we decided to do it in style.
Of course, finding a size 24/26 toga was never going to be easy and after several day searching the internet fruitlessly, I decided to rope in my Mum and make one at home.
A trip to our local Haberdashery ensued and for the bargain price of £14, I got everything I needed. Mum donated a white sheet and we were good to go.
Adding braided rope and a sash was easy, it took Mum’s skills to cut and sew the sheet up but finally it was all ready.
I ordered a laurel crown on ebay and waited for the day to arrive.
The event was on a Friday so I took it as a day holiday. Then had a bit of a brain fritz and managed to book myself a day of interviewing for new staff. D’oh.
By Thursday night my laurel crown had not arrived. With no time to do anything, I had no choice but to go without it.
Thankfully Friday morning it arrived. However I had ordered Silver and they had sent Gold. I directed Little Chick to the cupboard where I have an assortment of D.I.Y items and knew there was a can of silver spray paint and set her off on transforming it whilst I was at work.
Eventually I dashed home where H met me, threw my bags and clothes into her boot and off we set.
The drive was around 75 minutes long due to a little bit of rush hour traffic, but we easily navigated our way there and checked into the Mercure Letchworth Hall Hotel.
Letchworth Hall Hotel
And what a hotel it was! A 17th Century manor house. It was furnished with lush grounds, an indoor pool and several function rooms.
Going up to our room was a surprise. We had a wonderfully spacious twin room with a huge wet room. The best thing was that it had air-conditioning and as it was 30c outside it was a very welcome perk.
Great Twin Room
We poured ourselves a beverage, intending to start the night off well. A lovely friend Joanna had given me a bottle of Phipps Opal Gin for my birthday and told me it was extra special and to enjoy the surprise.
Opal Gin
I slowly poured in tonic and to our amazement the blue colour turned to a pink/lilac. Magic!
Putting some tunes on Spotify we started to get dressed up in our Roman finery.
I started by putting on my toga/shroud. I hadn’t put my sash or braided rope on yet and I quipped that I looked like the Statue of Liberty. Well of course we had to recreate this with the help of a tablet and a deodorant can.
Statue of Liberty recreated
Eventually we stopped messing around and finished getting ready. The attendees were due to meet in the bar at 730pm. There was only one drawback to this.
All made up
As we came out of our lift, we had to walk through another function area. This was all open plan and when we had gone to our room there was no-one there. Now it was filled with teenagers all dressed in tuxedos and posh gowns. Yes, you’ve got it; Prom Night.
The Detectives or should I say, Defectives?!?!
Styling it out, H just said ‘Good Evening’ in a posh voice whilst sashaying her way through and out into the main hotel.
A little blurry…
Eventually we were pointed in the direction of the right bar to meet in. We were really pleased to see a full house, with many of them wearing togas and tiaras. There was even a hen party and they were celebrating at the mystery night.
A Montage
We were very lucky to get put on a table with 3 other cracking couples. There was one empty seat who we assumed would be for a member of the cast.
The story started with a Roman soldier telling us of the death of the Consul. He then introduced us to several of the cast; the consul, his wife, sister, slave girl and a mysterious singer called Dimitilla.
Dimitilla our Dining Companion
She was the lady who sat at our table and was very mysterious indeed.
We had our starters, Fish pate with salad leaves, toasts and pesto dressing. It was delicious!
Starter Course
Then the story continued. It was quite convoluted and I have to admit the bottles of wine we were consuming didn’t help the situation.
Loving the night
Clues were put up on a board and we listened to the dialogue as we questioned the different cast members. Unfortunately, we took a real dislike to the sister of the consul, who quite frankly acted like a bitch. We made sure to interrogate her a lot.
Clues. Or Misdirection?
The main course was Chicken supreme with potatoes, fresh vegetables and a mushroom sauce. It was so good I dived in before even taking a photo.
My Mate H
Further scenes played out. Then there was a Murder!
The Consul and his Wife
This confused us a little as I for one thought the victim was involved in the plot. Back to the drawing board.
Dessert was a Raspberry Bavarois with coulis and fresh berries. It was absolutely divine and very refreshing.
Raspberry Bavarois
The final scenes were played out and then we had to make our guesses. By some fluke we actually guessed it right.
Success!!!
Malteasers for best costumes
We had such fun with the other guests on our table that we arranged to meet up for breakfast the next morning.
Toga Time
Retiring to our room (again barging through the prom with more ‘Good Evenings’) we poured another drink or two and put on some quiet music. H opted for Hugh Laurie who is a very accomplished musician as well as actor.
A pint of wine
We nattered away in the luxury of our air conditioned room. At some point we both fell asleep; me sitting upright.
Too soon the alarm went off.
I have to admit we both felt a little delicate so a full English was something that was much needed. We met our compatriots and had a leisurely breakfast.
Initially we were going to have a wander around Letchworth, however it was roasting hot already. We went back to our room to bask in the A/C before having to check out at 12 noon.
It was a marvellous experience and we laughed so so hard. There are several more coming up in the next few months, so watch this space for our next adventure.
Till next time,
SPSG xx