YOU PLAY DETECTIVE
the detective plays everyone else
Lockdown Murder Mystery?
What’s that when it’s at home?
A comedy murder mystery game, the first of many*
written, performed (all 12 characters), filmed and edited
by just ONE MAN
in ONE ROOM over five weeks of the London lockdown in April 2020.
*By ‘many’, we mean two (check out The Nighty before Christmas Murder Mystery). Hopefully, this is the first (and the cheapest) of many!
On his own! Why did he do that?
What else is there to do?
Oh, he built the website too
(and when I say ‘he’, I mean ‘I’)
Can I play this game?
I hope you do. The films are free to watch but, to fully play,
you can buy the clue pack for just £3.99.
If you still have questions, you’re thinking like a detective.
You’ll demand answers.
Oh, look…

Murder Mystery: How to play...
By sharing your screen, the host can play these videos as your remote guests watch from…anywhere in the world.
OR you can watch and solve alone or with friends in your home. Or a group of you can watch at (roughly) the same time and speak after each video.
PLEASE PLAY IMAGINATIVELY. If you like the game, please share on social media. I’d love to know of your experience.
The Case
Watch all four tapes for free.
If you want to make a game of it, buy the RIDICULOUSLY CHEAP clue-pack.
Buy it at any time (early as possible is recommended).
Tape 1
Det. Insp. Butler introduces the scene of crime and meets a couple of the lads from the local force (duration: 11mins.)
Tape 2
Butler interviews the eyewitnesses and comes face to face with the prime suspect (duration: 7mins.)
Tape 3
We meet an eccentric stonemason as Butler prepares to tackle two of his most challenging roles (duration 9.5mins.)
Tape 4
Butler interviews another suspect and an innocent shopper before a late witness comes forward (duration 10mins.)
Murder Mystery Interviews
Re-watch the interviews? Go to the specific locations in the timeline for:
Tape 1 (6:37) Police Officers Nutting Paul Sallow
Tape 2 (1:00) Nollie Parker & Rufus Walker
Tape 2 (3:14) Councillor Andrew Longbottom
Tape 3 (0:35) Eric Flynt
Tape 3 (4:07) Daisy & Davinia
Tape 4 (1:31) Phil Lean & Natalie Longbottom
Tape 4 (4:27) Ivor Goodear
Tape 4 (8:47) Credits
Have you solved it yet?
Look, I’m only going to say this five or six more times. You’ll have a far better chance of solving this case if you have the clue-pack. If you’ve not already done so, I strongly advise you buy it now. It’s only £3.99.

What's in the clue pack?
Info on the victim and suspects, photo evidence, newspaper clip, police evidence, conclusion and tie-break forms.
Oh, and some instructions and game suggestions.
All PDF’s so you don’t even have to print. You can read on your screen.
The Answers
to your questions, not the case
REVIEWS (to date)
Thank you to all who have taken the trouble to say how much they enjoyed playing.
Almost without exception, they say they can’t wait for the next one. My apologies for the delay.
I do have plans (I know; plans are no good). I have shot a Christmas Mystery (which won’t be out until…guess when). I hope to shoot a ‘Butler plays Sherlock Holmes’ mystery and I have an ambitious script that takes players to places they have never been before.
I would love to say all three of these will be out THIS YEAR (2021).
In the meantime, thanks to all who have played.
The Creator
Ian Williams / Ian Bailey (stage name)
In March 2020, London, like much of the world, was plunged into lockdown. I grabbed a few shots on my phone as the streets emptied. Now, I was out of work for… who knows how long.
I trained as an actor, ran a murder mystery company and work as a filmmaker (I know: it doesn’t show). With time on my hands, I brought it all together – dressing up, filming and editing (all in my small loft studio).
I appreciate I’m one of the lucky ones; not everyone has home access to cameras, lights, microphones, green screens and edit suites. Some don’t even have the basic wigs, costumes or replica guns.
Whilst our healthcare workers have been risking their lives, I have been doing this. I hope you enjoy it.
The Set
A quick tour around the film studios, a visit to some of the locations before heading back to the edit suite (after which, it is all sent to the web developers).
Contact
Drop me a line
Unless you’re the Wessex Police, of course. It would be good to hear your views (apologies in advance if it has gone wrong somewhere). I’d love to know if, and how, you played the game.
Any suggestions about what else you’d like to see (a blog, a Christmas Murder Mystery). ‘Unless you’re a ‘bot’, let me know anything; the price was far too low, information on joining The Royal Itching Criminology Society.
Anything at all really.