St Martin's Theatre is a

West End theatre West End theatre is mainstream professional theatre staged in the large theatres in and near the West End of London.Christopher Innes, "West End" in ''The Cambridge Guide to Theatre'' (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1998), pp. 1194–1 ...

which has staged the production of ''

The Mousetrap ''The Mousetrap'' is a murder mystery play by Agatha Christie. ''The Mousetrap'' opened in London's West End in 1952 and ran continuously until 16 March 2020, when the stage performances had to be temporarily discontinued during the COVID-1 ...

'' since March 1974, making it the longest continuous run of any show in the world. The theatre is located in West Street, near

Shaftesbury Avenue Shaftesbury Avenue is a major road in the West End of London, named after The 7th Earl of Shaftesbury. It runs north-easterly from Piccadilly Circus to New Oxford Street, crossing Charing Cross Road at Cambridge Circus. From Piccadilly Cir ...

, in the

West End of London The West End of London (commonly referred to as the West End) is a district of Central London, west of the City of London and north of the River Thames, in which many of the city's major tourist attractions, shops, businesses, government buil ...

. It was designed by

W. G. R. Sprague William George Robert Sprague (1863 – 4 December 1933) was a theatre architect. Biography He was born in Australia in 1863 the son of actress Dolores Drummond who returned with acclaim to London in 1874. Sprague was an articled clerk ...

as one of a pair of theatres, along with the Ambassadors Theatre, also in West Street.

Richard Verney, 19th Baron Willoughby de Broke Richard Greville Verney, 19th Baron Willoughby de Broke (29 March 1869 (London) – 16 December 1923) was a British peer and conservative politician. Life Verney was the son of Colonel Henry Verney, 18th Baron Willoughby de Broke and Geraldine ...

, together with B. A. (Bertie) Meyer, commissioned Sprague to design the theatre buildings. Although the Ambassadors opened in 1913, construction of the St Martin's was delayed by the outbreak of the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

. The theatre is still owned by the present Lord Willoughby de Broke and his family. The first production at the St Martin's was the spectacular

Edwardian musical comedy Edwardian musical comedy was a form of British musical theatre that extended beyond the reign of King Edward VII in both directions, beginning in the early 1890s, when the Gilbert and Sullivan operas' dominance had ended, until the rise of the A ...

Houp La! ''Houp La!'' is an Edwardian musical comedy extravaganza, with music by Nat D. Ayer and Howard Talbot, lyrics by Percy Greenbank and Hugh E. Wright, and a book by Fred Thompson and Hugh E. Wright. The story combines the comic financial troubles ...

'', starring

Gertie Millar Gertrude Ward, Countess of Dudley ( Millar; 21 February 1879 – 25 April 1952), known as Gertie Millar, was an English actress and singer of the early 20th century, known for her performances in Edwardian musical comedies. Beginning her care ...

, which opened on 23 November 1916. The producer was the impresario

Charles B. Cochran Sir Charles Blake Cochran (25 September 1872 31 January 1951), generally known as C. B. Cochran, was an English theatrical manager and impresario. He produced some of the most successful musical revues, musicals and plays of the 1920s and 193 ...

, who took a 21-year lease on the new theatre.Cochran, Charles Blake. ''The Secrets of a Showman'' (1925) p. 224 Many famous British actors passed through the St Martin's. In April 1923

Basil Rathbone Philip St. John Basil Rathbone MC (13 June 1892 – 21 July 1967) was a South African-born English actor. He rose to prominence in the United Kingdom as a Shakespearean stage actor and went on to appear in more than 70 films, primarily costume ...

played Harry Domain in

R.U.R. ''R.U.R.'' is a 1920 science-fiction play by the Czech writer Karel Čapek. "R.U.R." stands for (Rossum's Universal Robots, a phrase that has been used as a subtitle in English versions). The play had its world premiere on 2 January 1921 in H ...

and in June 1927

Henry Daniell Charles Henry Pywell Daniell (5 March 1894 – 31 October 1963) was an English actor who had a long career in the United States on stage and in cinema. He came to prominence for his portrayal of villainous roles in films such as '' Camille'' (1 ...

appeared there as Gregory Brown in ''Meet the Wife''. Successes at the theatre included

Hugh Williams Hugh Anthony Glanmor Williams (6 March 1904 – 7 December 1969) was a British actor and dramatist of Welsh descent. Early life and career Hugh Anthony Glanmor Williams (nicknamed "Tam") was born at Bexhill-on-Sea, Sussex to Hugh Dafydd Anth ...

's play (later a film) ''

The Grass is Greener ''The Grass Is Greener'' is a 1960 British romantic comedy film directed by Stanley Donen and starring Cary Grant, Deborah Kerr, Robert Mitchum, and Jean Simmons. The screenplay was adapted by Hugh Williams and Margaret Vyner from the play of ...

'',

John Mortimer Sir John Clifford Mortimer (21 April 1923 – 16 January 2009) was a British barrister, dramatist, screenwriter and author. He is best known for novels about a barrister named Horace Rumpole. Early life Mortimer was born in Hampstead, London, ...

's ''The Wrong Side of the Park'', and in 1970 the thriller ''

Sleuth Sleuth may refer to: * Detective *Sleuth, collective noun for a group of bears Computing * The Sleuth Kit, a collection of forensic analysis software *SLEUTH assembler language for the UNIVAC 1107 Entertainment and media *Cloo Cloo (stylized ...

'' which starred

Marius Goring Marius Re Goring, (23 May 191230 September 1998) was a British stage and screen actor. He is best remembered for the four films he made with Powell & Pressburger, particularly as Conductor 71 in '' A Matter of Life and Death'' and as Julian Cr ...

for a long run as Andrew Wyke. After Cochran, Bertie Meyer ran the theatre intermittently until 1967, when his son R. A. (Ricky) Meyer became administrator for the next two decades. The St Martin's has been listed Grade II on the

National Heritage List for England The National Heritage List for England (NHLE) is England's official database of protected heritage assets. It includes details of all English listed buildings, scheduled monuments, register of historic parks and gardens, protected shipwrecks, an ...

since March 1973. In March 1974

Agatha Christie Dame Agatha Mary Clarissa Christie, Lady Mallowan, (; 15 September 1890 – 12 January 1976) was an English writer known for her 66 detective novels and 14 short story collections, particularly those revolving around fictiona ...

's ''

'' transferred from the Ambassadors to the St Martin's, where it continued its run until 16 March 2020 when the show had to be suspended due to the

COVID-19 pandemic in the United Kingdom The COVID-19 pandemic in the United Kingdom is a part of the worldwide pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). In the United Kingdom, it has resulted in confir ...

, holding the record for the longest continuously running show in the world. On 17 May 2021, the show was the first West End show to re-open and has exceeded 26,000 performances at the St Martin's.

References

;Notes ;Sources * ''Guide to British Theatres 1750–1950'', John Earl and Michael Sell pp. 138–9 (Theatres Trust, 2000) * ''Who's Who in the Theatre'', edited by John Parker, tenth edition, revised, London, 1947, pps: 477–478 and 1184.

External links

Theatre description at "The Mousetrap" website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Saint Martins Theatre West End theatres Theatres completed in 1916 Theatres in the City of Westminster Grade II listed buildings in the City of Westminster Grade II listed theatres