What do you get if you cross Footballers' Wives, EastEnders and Heartbeat together?

A gentle 1960s drama with a sinister twist.

That's what the Alhambra offered last night when Susie Amy, Michael Melia, James Carlton and co got together for a play based on a famous 1960s film.

They're all better known for major roles on television but they put on a quite stunning play, performing Wait Until Dark, Frederick Knott's classic chiller about a young blind woman Suzy Henderson (Susie Amy, who you'll know as Chardonnay in Footballers' Wives) subjected to a night of terror by a band of villains.

They comprise Michael Melia, who played Eddie Royle in EastEnders, and James Carlton, who played bobby Steve Crane in Heartbeat for a couple of years.

They were joined by the most impressive villain of the lot, veteran actor Derren Nesbitt who you might recall from Special Branch, The Prisoner, The Persuaders and others.

They turn up at Suzy's home searching for a drug-filled doll which her husband unwittingly smuggled into the country.

Together they tell the story which grows from a slow-paced gentle tale into quite a gripping story full of energy, with the odd dash of humour, too.

If it rings a bell, it should. It's a London-set version of the 1967 film which starred Audrey Hepburn and which was set in Manhattan.

Susie deserves credit. She's on set for the bulk of the show and does a fine job to build the tension. She is particularly impressive in the climax of the play when she outwits the villains.

The whole story - a little complex in parts - is told in seven neat scenes.

There are times when the whole theatre is plunged into total darkness which is quite a strange feeling.

On until Saturday.