Drama

ROPE

Old Fire Station, Oxford

April 25-27, 8pm

Call 01865 305305 or oldfirestation.org.uk

It’s autumn 1929 and two wealthy and privileged Oxford undergraduates contrive to commit the perfect murder. The victim’s body is concealed in a chest in their Mayfair flat. A carefully selected party of guests, including the victim’s own father, is invited for dinner using the chest itself as their dining table. As a storm brews outside, can the pair keep their guilty secret or will they lose their nerve?

Comedy

SHAPPI KHORSANDI – DIRTY LOOKS AND HOPSCOTCH

The Theatre, Chipping Norton

Tuesday, April 30, 7pm

Call 01608 642350 or chippingnorton theatre.co.uk

Comedian, best-selling author and star of BBC Radio 4’s Shappi Talk, Shappi Khorsandi is back with her new show, Dirty Looks And Hopscotch — the story of how as a girl Shappi dreamed impossibly romantic dreams, including one about a love affair with a rock star. See her while you can.

Book Signing

JEN CAMPBELL

Blackwell’s Bookshop, Broad Street, Oxford

Tuesday, April 30, at 7pm

Tickets on 01865 333623 Jen Campbell’s Sunday Times Bestseller Weird Things Customers Say in Bookshops was a smash hit when released last year. The response from booksellers all over the world has been one of heartfelt agreement; it would appear that customers do say bizarre things in these places of learning. Blackwell’s therefore seems the perfect place for Jen to discuss her second book More Weird Things Customers Say in Bookshops with yet more tales from the antiquarian bookshop where Jen works, and includes a selection of weird things sent in from other booksellers across the world.

Drama

FINDING JOY

North Wall, Summertown

May 1-2, 8pm 01865 319450 or thenorthwall.com

You’re unlikely to have seen anything like a Vamos Theatre show – it’s full mask theatre without words, the story being told instead through clever visual performances and a vibrant original soundtrack. Finding Joy is about memory, ageing, love and, of course, about Joy, and takes us from the 1930s, right up to the present day, with a quirky and intricate set that’s full of surprises and brims with visual inventiveness, music, puppetry, dexterity and hilarity.

Crime Dinner

COLIN DEXTER

The Old Swan & Minster Mill, Minster Lovell

Wednesday, May 1, 7pm n Call 01993 774447 or oldswanandminstermill.com

Oxford crime writer Colin Dexter, besk known for his Inspector Morse novels, hosts an evening of crime-fuelled conversation and good food. For fans, it’ll be a chance to meet him and hear about his many novels and plots. For foodies, the evening starts with drinks and canapés, followed by a three-course dinner with wine and coffee. It costs £65 per person and includes a signed book.