This play opened the 2006 season at the Chichester Festival Theatre where it delighted its audiences.

It is pleasing to be able to report the delight continues with this touring version which includes its entire original cast bar one.

Luckily it still has Penelope Keith, repeating her superb performance as Grace, a recently widowed Vicar's wife.

The plot is an intricate one which unravels layer by layer and is full of surprises.

It would be churlish to divulge these and spoil the enjoyment of future audiences.

Suffice it to say it concerns the attempts of her daughter and sister to make Grace come to terms with the loss of Bardolph, her husband and the need to vacate the rectory, her home for many years, to make way for the new incumbent.

Skeletons tumble out of cupboards and raise the issue of what is worse - the sin or the fact it wasn't disclosed until it was too late.

The composite settings for the play, the rectory garden and a nearby stream, are wonderfully realised and deservedly received a round of applause as the curtain went up. Clever lighting and ethereal music denote the scene and time changes.

The play itself is beautifully written, full of wit and contains moments of sheer poignancy.

Its craftsmanship is reminiscent of that of Coward and Rattigan, both of whom also featured in the Chichester season.

It is a perfect vehicle for the special talent of Miss Keith containing many hilarious lines which allow her to deliver them in her waspish style.

One which delighted the audience was that vets were better trained than GPs - when did one ever hear of a hamster having to wait nine months for an operation?

But her performance is not just a masterclass of comic timing - it is also a fine example of her skill in conveying emotional sensitivity which at times is heartbreaking.

The rest of the cast provide excellent support, with Polly Adams outstanding as the missionary sister of Grace, home from Uganda for the funeral. Hers is a delightful performance, a mixture of battiness and worldly wisdom.