Performed by the Winton Players from April 23 to 25, The Unfriend was an exuberant triumph: a funny script, great acting, good costumes and a fabulous set.

A London couple, Peter and Debbie - played by Simon Stanley and Laura Sheppard - meet a Trump-loving American - Elsa Jean Krakowski, portrayed by Anne-Lise Kadri - on a cruise. They give her their email address and she invites herself to stay.

Subsequently they learn she is linked with at least five murders, although she has never been charged. Just as they decide to ask her not to come, she turns up early, and they cannot find a diplomatic way to turn her away.

After Elsa arrives, a policeman (Dave Joyce) turns up. They learn that she stayed with another cruise ship passenger, who died just after she left. In the words of Debbie, is Elsa ‘Mary Poppins’? Or ‘Murder Poppins’? The question remains unanswered, but as the play ends they discover their annoying neighbour (Geoff Wootton) has died.

The play was a master class in directing. Although a script has instructions, the director, Penny Young, set the pace, plotted the action, helped select the props and agreed the set.

This was evident in the natural flow of the action: sniffing the milk to make sure it had not gone off, grimaces on the face of Rosie (Daisy Bedford), the “Muuuum” of Alex (William Holmes), Peter’s facial expressions as he listened to Debbie’s complaints.

Best of all was the neighbour’s annoying “You’re a busy man”, perfectly delivered in a nasal tone. The dialogue, peppered with Americanisms, rang true to life, and Anne-Lise Kadri delivered them in a flawless American accent.

Is she a murderer or not? The audience was never sure, but think twice about having tea with Elsa Jean Krakowski (or Anne-Lise Kadri). And William’s hair was his own.

Andrew Ryder