The Man in the Grey Coat is a 27-minutes-long audio play by David Elder.

It’s 1933. Charlie is bored doing low-level police work in sleepy Cheltenham. But then he’s given the opportunity to work on a secret surveillance mission, monitoring the poet Cecil Day-Lewis, who’s suspected of being an active member of the Communist Party. Will this be the big career breakthrough Charlie’s been looking for? And will Cecil be tempted to start some sort of revolutionary activity in the town?

If you enjoy this play you may also enjoy others in the ‘On the verge’ series which deal with various types of change. The others in the series are Face the Music and Big Blue Things by David Elder; and Forbidden Music and We Can't Be by Lou Beckett.

The Man in the Grey Coat was produced by Parrot Productions and directed by David Elder. The policeman Charlie was played by Edward Derbyshire. Cecil Day-Lewis was played by James Reynard, and Mary Day-Lewis by Claire Tucker. Sound was by David Holland, with thanks to the Cotswold Listener studios. The sound effects used were from BBC Sound Effects – © copyright 2022 BBC. Music was composed by Jim Barne. The Gustav Holst music ‘I Vow To Thee My Country’ was arranged by Paul Ayres and performed under licence by the Reading Phoenix Choir. Parrot Productions are grateful to the Cheltenham Arts Council for their generous financial support. The image used in the poster was designed by Sarah Harvey of Art Works. Further thanks to Marianne Gaston and Annette Holland.

Please send comments or feedback about the play to davidelder.net@gmail.com