Hello there, and welcome to your murder mystery. 

Before you begin your journey with Inspector Piper, there are some things you will need to know first. 

To solve your mystery, you will have to follow Pipers journey across Lancaster to interview all the relevant suspects. 

At each location you will have to solve a clue in order to open up the information you need to solve the crime. 
 
The answer sheet to all the clues has been forwarded to you in your purchase email. However we recommend only looking at the sheet if you are well and truly stumped. All the answers can be found by keeping your eyes open and looking around. 

You will have to self navigate through Lancaster in order to find your locations: so if Piper goes to the Lancaster Castle you will have to work your own way there in order to find your clue and work out your evidence. All the guidance points will be points of interest, and there is no time limit on completing your mission so if you wish to stop at any then feel absolutely free. The locations you choose to go to will be in a (relatively) ordered fashion....so as long as you don't go and chase a dead lead. 

At each page you will get some information from an individual or suspect; and although these will be brought together at the end we do recommend taking a pen and paper with you to make notes to help you on your quest. 

If you still are feeling stuck getting towards the end there are hints you can call on in order to give you a little extra nudge before you come up with your decision. You can go back and forward in between pages (previous and next button) however do try not to close the page as you will have to restart from the beginning. 

Hints will be prompted when they are available; and they are worth taking as they may provide you will some extra information that will lead you to solve this heinous crime. 

When  you make your final guess; that is the end of it. Once you press complete you will be taken through to the results page....and only then will you work out if you have the brain power of Holmes or the critical thinking of a gnat. 

We wish you the best of luck; and when you are in your start point of The Grand Theatre, Lancaster: begin your investigation.

The year is 1902, and the Lancaster Theatre was hosting a Shakespearian festival of plays, with the pièce de resistance being the original works of Shakespeare on display. The manager of the Grand Theatre, Thomas Williams, has proudly stated this will be the greatest spectacle of theatre ever. Sadly, the day before the grand performance the works of Shakespeare were stolen, with one guard killed and the other (Jake Sherry) hospitalised with a head injury. A witness to the scene reports hearing loud shouts and a blood curdling scream before a smashing noise. There was no one else present at the time however the last person to leave the scene, Amelie Moore, who works as a ticket officer says she definitely remembered locking the door after she left. The lead actor and actress claim they were both in their hotel rooms practising lines. The wet blustery night meant the wind was causing all forms of strange noises, what was the noise heard.....the wind blowing or something more sinister? 

With the local Police team devastated that the papers may be lost forever they have called in Piper for help.

Can you work out who stole the papers? Where they are being held and what was the murder weapon?

 

You start by meeting up with the local detective, who informs you of a few extra suspects to the crime.

“Hello Piper, nice to see you here, we really could do with your help. The papers have been gone for more than 24 hours now and we are worried they may already have been moved on. We have already taken one person into custody, a local thief Emma Herbert, who was seen acting suspiciously on the morning after the crime. Other lead suspects are a known antiques dealer Nick Teak who specialises in black market sales, and also a local historian Mark Evert who is known to be an avid Anti-Stratfordian theorist; believing that Shakespeare was not the writer of his works and he was never the rightful owner of them.

Whilst the two lead actors of the final performance claim they were in their rooms, the night manager of the hotel tells us there were definite movements from one of the bedrooms last night.

Well, that’s all I’ve got for you now. We think the guard who survived will be waking up today so you may want to pay him a visit. He will be devastated to hear of his friend’s death.

If you need any more help just press the hints button, and I can give you two clues: as well as two clues from the crime scene officer.

Good luck Piper"

The Suspects

Mark Evert – Historian

Jake Sherry - Guard

Nick Teak  - Antiques Dealer

Amelie Moore -  Ticket Officer

Thomas Williams – Theatre Manager

Emma Herbert – Known Thief

Joan Heron – Lead Actress

Samuel Petty – Lead Actor

Sarah Kelly - Witness

The game has started, and the clock is ticking. You know the manuscripts won’t last long so you best get to work. To start your journey go to The Grand Theatre, Lancaster. LA1 1NL. To open up your first part of the investigation you will need to input the year The Grand Theatre was opened.

You decide to start at the scene of the crime. Where you meet up with a member for the crime scene investigation team and Thomas Williams.

You ask the CSI officer what he can tell you

“Well boss, this is a strange one. There doesn’t seem to be any force of entry, yet somebody must have sneakily broken in as the poor guards were well and truly beaten, there is blood everywhere. You are either looking at someone who was known to the guards or a very sneaky thief. There are no fingerprints sadly and the glass casing around the books were smashed to pieces with something very heavy. The manuscripts seem to have vanished into mid air. They are very heavy so couldn’t be carried easily away, not by any obvious means anyway. Not a lot more I can tell you at the moment. But I will help you out when I can. Just look for my hints on your way around.

You next turn to Thomas Williams, the Grand Manager. He looks very distressed and close to breaking down. You ask him what he knows about this, if he has any clues who could have been involved and where he was.

“Oh goodness what a mess. This was set up to be one of the greatest shows on earth and has turned into a royal tragedy. I honestly cannot think who could have done this. Only myself and Amelie have keys to the main entrance and the safe; and she has shown to have been a very trustworthy member of staff over the 5 years she has been here. The only person I know who was against these plays was Mark Evert; the blasphemer. He doesn’t talk one ounce of sense and was so angry when I mentioned we were putting this show on; he hates Shakespeare.  I was at the Cathedral last night in discussion with the Bishop regarding our next performance as we are putting on a show he is not best pleased to see.”

You thank him for his time and move on with your investigation.

You decide to head to the pub, where all good crime scenes come together. Your contact tells you that Mark Evert is always here so you may as well pay him a visit as you are passing.

You will need to find the Borough pub in Dalton Square to continue. Can you identify how many pillar columns stand outside the main entrance?

You pop in to the pub and the barman quickly points out Mr Evert for you, seated in the window having a drink.

You introduce yourself and he immediately looks worried. You ask him where he was last night and why was he so angry about the show.

“Well, I was home, alone if you want to know. Not that you will believe me. I know what they will all be saying. But I must stand by my conviction; Shakespeare was a fraud who never wrote anything of worth in his whole life. He copied, cheated and stole ideas; then was celebrated as a genius. Don’t get me wrong, I am horrified someone got hurt in the process however I must say I am glad those records have been stolen….not that I had anything to do with it at all”. He adds quickly.

You inform him that one of the guards has in fact died, so this is now a murder investigation.

“What, oh that’s awful. I do hope you catch the person that did it. However if they are of any sense they would have sold the papers straight away, they would be worth a fortune on the black market, not that I see any worth in them whatsoever”.

You mark down his address for searching later on.

You decide to check out the alibi of Thomas Williams and head to the Cathedral, on the corner of St Peter’s Road and East Road. The Priest informs you that Thomas and the Bishop were in fact here all night discussing certain topics. You have researched that Amelie Moore lives not far away so decide to pay her a visit.

To carry on with your investigation can you find how many steps lead up to the main entrance of the cathedral?

You knock on Amelie’s door and she opens it. You can immediately see she has been crying. Attractive and petite she allows you into her property. You look around to see quite a run down flat and the house feels cold. You ask her where she was last night and if she knew anything that could help with the investigation.

“Sob sob sob, I just can’t believe it, I really liked those two guards; they used to look after me when it got a little rowdy. It’s just awful what has happened. Well I left slightly later than usual, the guards had their night time coffee and when I locked the door all was well.

There are only two keys and it is still with me here now (she shows Piper the key). I bumped into Sarah Kelly on the way out, had a quick chat then went home; where I have been all night.”

You ask her if she knew anyone who could have done this.

“I don’t know what to think at the moment….I just can’t believe this is how it has turned out”. And she starts crying again.

You thank her for her time and move on.

You decide to head back to the office to debrief on everything you have worked out so far, as well as have a discussion with the only person in custody, Emma Herbert. You work your way back to the police station on Marton Street.

Who’s name can you see on the street opposite the station?

So Emma, you were spotted around the premises at the time of the incident, can you please explain why you were there? (you noted the witness said Emma was not wearing gloves nor was carrying a bag.

“Well, I can’t lie, I was there for the manuscript, however I didn’t do this. But I can tell you something. The reason I was there is because there was a tip off on the underground market, that someone was planning to steal the papers. My plan was to linger outside and then take it from them, leaving no trace of myself behind! And who would go to the cops explaining they had just been robbed after having done this deed? Sadly, I didn’t see anyone. I saw the girl that worked there leave and waited and waited but that was it. Nothing else. I could swear I heard some noises from inside, but no one could have gotten in from what I could tell. After about an hour I left”.

You search her house and check for any fingerprints or signs she was on the premises. Nothing links her to the crime.

After a short coffee, the telephone goes informing you that the prisoner who was attacked has woken up. You decide to pay him a visit. You head off to the hospital, specifically the old medical one unit at the end nearest the canal (note: you do not need to enter the hospital to gain a clue). The old bit of the hospital is the first part of the hospital you see when joining South Road/A6.

Look at the engraving on the wall near the entrance. Who was the foundation stone laid by? Just the first and surname will do?

Jake Sherry had only just woken up, but his vitals were stable and he was agreeable to talking to the police. You ask him what he remembers about the night. He does not yet know about his partner, so you decide not to inform him just yet.

“Ooooh my head hurts. And my throat. And my stomach. I feel sick. To be honest officer I can’t really remember that much. I remember being on guard, Amelie had just left and locked the door. We were settling into our night watch, guarding the papers. I had just done a walk around and we were both stood around the cabinet having a drink. All of a sudden I hear a crash, with the cabinet smashed and Ben lay on the floor bleeding…I do hope he is ok. Whoever did this must have been bloomin quick as that is the last thing I remember, before they got me. Then I woke up here. Sorry officer, I do not remember any faces or voices either. I do hope you manage to find who did it.”

You thank him for his time and wish him a speedy recovery. Inwardly you are upset he cannot point you in any direction to narrow down your search.

As the hotel where the actors were staying is right across the road, you decide to pay a visit there. You head towards the City and cross Aldcliffe Road, turning up at The Toll House.

Can you find the house of Daniel Thwaites? What year was it his?

You do not tell the day manager to let them know you are visiting. You ask for the key to Samuel Petty's room and race in; but no one is to be seen. You then head to the room of Joan Heron where you can hear voices inside.

“But no-one can find out about it, it would destroy us both if they did”.

“It must be our secret; however hard it is to bear”.

You barge in and see the two sat on the bed talking to each other.

You ask them where they were last night. Both appear reticent to answer. They both maintain they were in their rooms practising lines and did not leave. You explain that the night manager heard doors opening.

“I left for a very short while to go for a walk; no more than 10 minutes at most and most certainly did not venture down to the theatre” said Samuel confidently.

You sense they are not telling you everything however a thorough search of both rooms leads to nothing. You tell them to report to the station tomorrow morning to take a more detailed station. 

You leave, still waiting to piece everything together. However, you are starting to get a clearer picture as the case unfolds.  

Your next point of call is to the witness; Sarah Kelly. You have agreed to meet her for a coffee. You venture into the City maintaining on the A6 following the traffic down, all the way until you reach Atkinson’s coffee house.

To open the next clue, tell us the date above the door and under tea.

Sarah looks nervous as you approach her. You show her your credentials and see seems more at ease. You ask her what she saw the night of the incident.

“Well, I was just doing my usual walk home from work. I bumped into Amelie as she was leaving, she was telling me about how busy it has been, and we had a little natter about life; moaning about too much work and not enough money. She seemed cheery enough and I left her to continue my walk home. I suddenly heard a loud crash from inside the theatre, followed by a yell, and then silence. I listened for a good 10 minutes but did not hear a thing; it was like the place was empty. I just presumed it was some rehearsals taking place so made my way home. Then I saw the milkman doing his usual round collecting all the empty bottles just down the street from the theatre”.

You ask her if she saw anybody else?

“Just that little thief Emma, she looked smug she did, but she was outside after I heard the noises”.

That is all she can tell you; you thank her for your time and give her your details.

You just have one more person to talk to, the antiques dealer who you know would be interested in the manuscripts. You have arranged a meeting with him at the Castle. Head to the great building in Lancaster to find him. He already has an alibi for the night.

Can you find the name of the witch on the white stone outside the Castle?

Nick Teak greets you with a smile. “This story would make a great play in itself” he quips.

You ask him if he had heard anything about the thefts.

“Well yes, but there are always rumours of this nature, however this time it did seem a little more serious, there were some people who thought they would be close to purchasing them by now. However, it all seems to be incredibly quiet, so whoever did this must be waiting for the right time”.

You ask him what are the chances they could be recovered if sold.

“About 1%. Once they are into the black-market world they very rarely resurface”.

You ask him what environment the papers would need to be kept in.

“ If would have to be dry, and room temperature. If they got wet, they would be virtually worthless as they would just crumble.”

You thank him for his time.

You have a very good idea who was behind this whole plot now…