RENOWNED detective Sherlock Holmes is called on to solve a First World War mystery in a new production set to have its world premiere in Henley.

The play To Kill a Canary will be launched at the Kenton Theatre on Wednesday, September 17, at an invitation-only, Sherlock Holmes-themed event.

Theatre-goers can take in the production when it starts an eight-night run the next day (Thursday, September 18), followed by a possible transfer to the West End and venues worldwide.

Set in 1916, Holmes and his assistant Dr Watson, by now in their 60s, are asked to solve a series of killings of women munition workers whose constant exposure to chemicals turned their skin yellow, earning them the nickname ‘Canary Girls’.

And their investigation takes in the infamous Jack the Ripper murders which occurred 30 years previously after it emerges that the workers have been killed in a similar grisly way to the Whitechapel victims.

Are the murders the work of a German spy network, the swansong of Jack the Ripper himself or the handiwork of a copycat killer? Peter Land takes the lead role of Holmes and Dr Watson is played by Nigel Fairs. The play also features Justine Powell as Rose, the head of the factory.

The production is being co-produced by the chairman of the Kenton Theatre trustees, Ed Simons, and his friend Kent Walwin, with whom he has been collaborating on making films for quarter of a century.

Producer Mr Simons said: “What could be more thrilling than a brand new Sherlock Holmes mystery to keep the audience on the edge of their seats?”

The Jack the Ripper storyline for the play is based on a discovery made by Mr Walwin 22 years ago. Sitting in his recently acquired office in Crispin Street, London E1, one November evening, he was disturbed by a group of Swedish tourists outside taking photographs.

Talking to one of them, Mr Walwin discovered that his office was opposite the site of a dosshouse where in 1888 the body of Ripper victim Marie Kelly was found.

And there is still a sign on the office building for ‘Donovan Brothers — Makers of Fine Paper Bags’, where Jack the Ripper had allegedly bought a paper bag in which he sent the kidney of the murdered woman to the City of London Police.

Fascinated by the unsolved Ripper murders, Mr Walwin began to imagine how ‘The World’s Greatest Detective’ and his sidekick - the creations of legendary author Sir Arthur Conan Doyle - might have applied their technique to apprehend the culprit.

Written by John Clark and Keith Digby and set against a background of politics and espionage, To Kill a Canary sees Holmes and Dr Watson summoned by the Government to work on the case which if not solved might lose Britain the war on the Western Front. The play will be directed by Ian Mcfarlane.

Mr Simons said: “We are extremely excited to have been able to bring on board some great theatre talent who have much experience in staging plays of West End and Broadway calibre.”

Performances are from September 18 to 21 and 24 to 27. Tickets, adults £15, concessions £14 and students £9, are on sale from the theatre box office on 01491 575698 or online at the website: www.kentontheatre.co.uk