The Mousetrap Edinburgh

The Mousetrap Edinburgh tickets cover six days in spring, when Agatha Christie’s whodunnit plays the Edinburgh Playhouse from Monday 5 to Saturday 10 April 2027 on its 75th anniversary tour of the UK and Ireland. There are evening performances at 7.30pm from Monday to Saturday and matinees at 2.30pm on Wednesday 7 and Saturday 10 April.

The Mousetrap Edinburgh at the Playhouse on Greenside Place

The Playhouse is the largest all seated theatre in the UK, with 3,059 seats spread across the Stalls, Circle and Balcony. It opened on 12 August 1929 as a super cinema modelled on the great picture palaces of America, and it is now a Category A listed building where Edinburgh comes for touring musicals, comedy and festival shows each August. A chamber thriller in a house this size is a rare event, and it creates a curious, thrilling effect: three thousand people holding their breath at the same moment over a single snowy drawing room.

Early April in the capital usually means the Easter school holidays, crisp evenings and the first tourists on the Royal Mile. The Playhouse stands at the top of Leith Walk, so a matinee can easily be paired with a walk up Calton Hill beforehand or dinner in the New Town afterwards.

The story of The Mousetrap

Monkswell Manor is about to welcome its first guests. Mollie and Giles Ralston, married for a year and new to running a business, are anxious to make a good impression, but the weather has other plans. By evening the snow has closed the roads, a murder in London is all over the radio, and a police sergeant arrives with reason to believe that someone at the manor is in danger, or is the danger. Christie lets the suspicion drift from guest to guest. Like every audience before you, you will be asked to keep the identity of the murderer locked inside the theatre.

The Mousetrap tour cast in Edinburgh

Susan Penhaligon, star of A Fine Romance and a past member of the London company at St Martin’s, plays Mrs Boyle, and Nicholas Bailey, known to millions from EastEnders, plays Major Metcalf. The Ralstons are played by Emily Laing and Jack Hardwick. Thomas Barrett plays the young Christopher Wren, Clare Duffy is Miss Casewell, James Peake is Mr Paravicini, and Alfie Richards is Detective Sergeant Trotter. The understudies are Ben Gresswell, Sophie Lagden, Judith Rae and Darren Ruston. Hannah Chissick is the director, with casting by Denise Silvey and resident direction by Myles Brown.

Best seats for The Mousetrap Edinburgh

In a theatre as large as the Playhouse, seat choice changes the experience. The front and central Stalls keep you close to the performers’ faces, which is where many of the clues live. The front of the Circle offers a balanced view of the whole set, useful for tracking entrances and exits through the manor’s doors. The Balcony is the most affordable option and gives a full picture of the stage, though binoculars are not a bad idea. Our Edinburgh Playhouse venue guide explains the layout, bars and access facilities in detail.

Running time and age advice for The Mousetrap

Allow about 2 hours 5 minutes including a 20-minute interval. The producers recommend it for ages 7 and over. It is suspenseful rather than frightening, with no strong language, and the Easter holiday matinees make it an easy family outing. Curious about how the play became a phenomenon? Our guide to the world’s longest running play explains.

Getting to the Edinburgh Playhouse

The Playhouse is at 18 to 22 Greenside Place, roughly ten minutes on foot from Edinburgh Waverley station and close to the St James Quarter, Picardy Place tram stop and many bus routes along Leith Walk. Parking in the city centre is limited, so public transport is the easiest option.

The Mousetrap tour in Scotland

Edinburgh is the middle of three Scottish dates. The tour arrives from Eden Court in Inverness and travels straight on to The Mousetrap in Glasgow the following week, which makes the King’s Theatre the alternative if these dates are full. South of the border, the next ATG date after Edinburgh is The Mousetrap in Milton Keynes. For all stops see our Mousetrap 75th anniversary tour dates and cast article, and for the London original see The Mousetrap at St Martin’s Theatre.

The Mousetrap Edinburgh dates and times

The Mousetrap plays for one week, 5–10 April 2027: evenings at 7.30pm from Monday to Saturday, with 2.30pm matinees on Wednesday and Saturday. The running time is approximately 2 hours 5 minutes, including a 20-minute interval, and the show is recommended for ages 7 and over.