Don your deerstalker, grab your magnifying glass and get your ‘finger of suspicion’ at the ready because Edinburgh Fringe favourites, Degrees of Error, are bringing back their multiple sell-out show for your sleuthing pleasure.
The team creates a classic murder mystery on-the-spot in this ingenious improvised comedy. You, the audience, become the author as the cast act out your very own Agatha Christie-inspired masterpiece live on stage. At each show, this extraordinarily talented company uses audience suggestions to create a unique, original and extremely comical murder mystery just for you. All you have to do... is solve it!
We caught up with director, co-founder and co-developer and cast member Lizzy Skrzypiec to learn more.
What inspired the creation of Murder, She Didn't Write?
We adore murder mysteries and I come from a background of TV gameshow development which I think shows through in some of the show… oh go on then I’ll be honest. Way back when we knew we wanted to make an improv theatre show, we all pitched different ideas: the two favourites among the group were an improvised Western and a classic British murder mystery. As we played about with these concepts, our (my) American accent work was so atrocious we ended up favouring the murder mystery. Then over the years we developed the show to what it is today. But there’s a real Sliding Doors moment where we could have been Sheriff We Didn’t Shoot.
You’ve had audience suggestions like 'an orange wooden leg' or a 'Love Island recoupling.' What is the absolute most unhinged, logistically impossible audience suggestion you’ve ever had to build a narrative around?"
Oh goodness, we have had loads. We have had a few moon landings or space-themed ones that we have to work hard to force into that 1930s time period. I think a few of our cast members still shudder at the thought of a Large Hadron Collider being part of the evidence.
As the director—and often the MC—how hard is it to resist the urge to yell 'Cut!' when your cast completely derails a beautiful narrative thread just to make each other laugh?
Well I would be quite the hypocrite if I jumped up at something like that as I am often the perpetrator of such mischief. But I can tell you there are some serious indents in the detective chair where I, and other detectives, have squeezed the arms incredibly tightly.
When you play the detective solving the crime after the interval, how much of it is genuine, panicked real-time deduction based on whatever madness happened in the first half?
A lot! I’d compare it to doing a very difficult crossword whilst being watched by hundreds of people… and riding a bicycle at the same time! Sometimes when I’ve written down the evidence of the crime scene I manage to pull things together relatively quickly; but there are days when it’s getting close to when I need to barge in and solve the mystery that I’m still trying to make sense of that one last piece of evidence. “But why was just the victim’s nose blue?” 5 minutes to go, “What could it have been that turned it blue?” 3 minutes to go. “Was it ink? From a pen? Has anyone mentioned pens?” 1 minute til I jump up. The trick is not to let your brain spiral and keep calm. It’s even harder in the one-act fringe format where we do the whole show in 70 minutes.
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| Lizzy Skrzypiec. Photo by Pamela Raith |
Improv is built on the classic rule of 'Yes, and...' but a good murder mystery requires secrets and lies. How do you balance being a good collaborative improv partner while trying to sneaky-sabotage your fellow cast members on stage?
Ah yes, that’s true. And the second rule of improv is ‘make your partner look good’. So the truth is we wouldn’t serve our fellow cast members curve balls if we didn’t think they could knock it out of the park. So it is a balance. And we all have very different skills, ways we play and things we enjoy. But then there is always that sneaky voice of the tiny devil on your shoulder that thinks it could be very funny to make someone sit on an imaginary chair for the whole scene. So it does depend on the mood. We’ll find out in the pub later, I’m sure. It’s always in good humour and the fun spirit of the show.
Who in the Degrees of Error company is the absolute easiest to break on stage, and what is your go-to tactic to make them crack?
Oh everyone cracks so very differently and it has been a pleasure learning what makes people corpse. I would hedge my bets with Rachael, I think. Sometimes I can make her go just by saying a particular phrase or word. Usually rude stuff. But to be honest with you, I’m easy to crack too. Once when I was detective, in a case where the victim’s nether regions had been completely shaved, I had a fabulous reason on why that meant one particular suspect was the killer. But I said the phrase “but where are the pubes?” too many times and made myself go. Peter was the corpse on stage in that show and even they were corpsing too.
By day, you develop TV quiz and game shows. By night, you direct improvised murder mysteries. How much does your game-designer brain secretly influence how you structure the chaos of Murder, She Didn't Write?
Yeah, a lot! Oooh, if we had the technology I’d love everyone to be able to vote who they think the murderer is similar to when they ask the audience on ‘Who Wants To Be a Millionaire’. But yes of course it certainly has an impact on the format of the show. Actually, if I don’t leave enough time between the two aspects of gameshows and Murder, She Didn’t Write, I can find myself too in my own head. It’s good, especially when we are regularly performing, to shake off that planning and really get in the moment and become an ideas receiver and good listener rather than musing on my own thoughts.
What’s the ultimate sign that an improv scene is dying and needs an immediate, dramatic murder to save it?
So one major creative influence on the show and the pace of scenes is our show editor Rob Kershaw. He is very much the hand of god from the tech desk. He controls when scenes end through the lights and when flashbacks happen mid-scene. Sometimes he’ll surprise us, catch us out or make us laugh with his decisions to cut, slow fade or call flashbacks on something we weren’t expecting. In general scene work though, if you’ve already had one conflict in a scene which then gets resolved or loses its ferocity, then it could probably have been three separate shorter scenes.
How will you mentally and physically prepare for a run at the Fringe?
Mentally, I will prepare myself for living in student accommodation by reverting to my chaotic student mentality. Physically, I will make sure I have a stash of Monster energy drinks (when will they sponsor us?) and more Huel than you can shake a stick at. I obviously would never shake any sticks, of course because I’m too weak from not eating proper vegetables at the Fringe.
What is the one item in your Fringe Survival Kit that you can’t live without at the Fringe?
Collapsable tupperware. I won't put anything in it though because I lack the ability to plan meals in advance.
If you were murdered in a classic country house, what bizarre everyday object would you want to be your murder weapon?
I would be crushed by the collective weight of all of the miniature shampoos and conditioners I steal from every hotel visit.
Other than your own show, are there any other shows you would recommend at the Fringe this year?
Oh, of course, I’m personally very excited to see ‘Margaret Thatcher, Queen of Hollywood’. I’ve loved her other shows immensely.
Murder, She Didn't Write runs at the Edinburgh Fringe at Assembly George Square (Aikman Theatre) from 5th - 31st August 2026. For tickets visit https://assemblyfestival.com/whats-on/murder-she-didnt-write
The show continues on an extensive tour with dates throughout 2026 and into 2027. For full tour dates and venues visit https://www.murdershedidntwrite.com/
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| Lizzy Skrzypiec. Photo by Pamela Raith |
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