The House by the Lake is a 1956 British stage thriller in three acts, by Hugh Mills. The main characters are Maurice and Stella, a brother and sister who plot to murder their unlikeable brother, Colin. The other characters include Maurice's wife, Janet, Colin's long-suffering wife, Iris, and Colonel Forbes, a neighbour.
It premiered at the Prince of Wales Theatre, CardiffWearing p.430 before transferring to London's West End, where it ran for two years, starring Flora Robson and Andrew Cruickshank; and has since become a staple of amateur dramatics.
Original production The play, directed by John Fernald, opened at the Duke of York's Theatre on 9 May 1956, with the following cast:
Brenda - Doreen Morton Colin - Paul Lee Colonel Forbes - Andrew Laurence Colonel Forbes - Frank Royde Iris - Sylvia Coleridge Janet Holt - Flora Robson Maurice Holt - Andrew Cruickshank Mr Howard - Alan McNaughtan Mr. Howard - Richard Warner Nurse Thomson - Annette Kerr Stella - Jenny Laird
The production was designed by Fanny Taylor.
References
Bibliography Wearing, J.P. The London Stage 1950–1959: A Calendar of Productions, Performers, and Personnel. Rowman & Littlefield, 2014.