The Makings of a Murderer 2 – The Real Manhunter – Harlow Playhouse, Saturday 8^th February 2025.

A Review by Ian Beckett

Although it wasn’t billed as “family entertainment,” this evening’s offering appealed to myself, my wife, and my teenage daughter, all of whom enjoy crime drama and to a degree true crime. My wife and I had also watched and been impressed by the TV series “Manhunt” in which actor Martin Clunes produced an outstanding performance of Senior Investigating Officer Colin Sutton, who caught serial killers Levi Bellfield and ‘Night Stalker’ Delroy Grant.

“The Makings of a Murderer 2”, as you might detect was the second nationwide true crime theatre tour, by Colin Sutton, and we were promised a chilling, thrilling night at the theatre as Colin, former head of a Metropolitan Police murder squad, shared the stories of how he caught some of the UK’s most notorious murderers. We were not disappointed. It was as unique, one-off event, perfect for true crime fans and theatre goers alike, and the full house at Harlow Playhouse showed both an appetite and an appreciation of this offering.

The Beckett family had no idea what to expect. All three of us were intrigued how, what on the face of it sounded like a documentary, would work on the stage, and capture our attention for two hours. However work it did and we, along with the whole of the audience, were captivated.

Soon after he was welcomed to the stage with warmth and a rapturous applause (I suspect many had been to see “The Makings of a Murderer 1”) Colin issued a ‘trigger warning’ by way of what might well have been a shaggy dog story. He told the audience “I have to warn you, this evening I’m going to talk about murder.” To which the audience laughed in unison; the clue after all was in the title of the evening. 

“You might laugh” he said, “But I had am email from a lady who said she had really enjoyed the show, but her aunt had been a little shocked by some of the content!” Shaggy dog story or not, the device that Colin Sutton had employed was a clever one. He had given the audience permission, not only to relax and enjoy themselves but to laugh, something I certainly didn’t expect to do, and do in such abundance.

Colin Sutton acknowledged that he had become renowned for having led the teams that who caught serial killers Levi Bellfield and Delroy Grant, and he did so with a degree of humility; it wasn’t all about him but about the joint effort of teams, and in some cases different police forces, working together. He acknowledged that much has been written about these high-profile cases but that there was still more to reveal and those case would be explored in the second half of the evening. The first half of the evening would focus on some of the lesser-known cases Colin had been involved with, that had provided the foundations for his later successes. Those subsequent cases would be look at in more detail in the second half.

Armed with a large screen onto which photographs, and short videos were shared, aided by his trusty red pointer, Colin Sutton was engaging, informative, and much to our surprise very, very funny. Larger than life, it was clear that he has lost a considerable amount of weight since recording the documentaries that charted his career. He provided small details that provided insight into how complex cases are impacted upon by action or inaction, and big details that, whilst shocking, were, at one and the same time, reassuring in terms of the priorities and resources murder cases, be they “manhunts” or “whodunnits” are given. 

This was a one man show, and I can’t help but wonder what inspired Colin Sutton to take his life and experiences on tour. I can imagine him bringing those experiences to life, perhaps after dinner with friends, and them saying to him “you should be on the stage Colin!” Bring to life those experiences he certainly did and like a good entertainer he kept his audience wanting more – Mrs B and I went home and started watching “The Real Manhunter” documentary series from the beginning to gain greater insight. We loved “The Makings of a Murderer 2” and will certain be up for “The Makings of a Murderer 3” as we are sure there is more to tell, and there are plenty of other people ready to return to Harlow Playhouse to be informed and entertained!