Shane Richie and Jessie Wallace. Photo: (C) BBC THIS TOUR HAS NOW ENDED Read our review of The Perfect Murder

Producers have announced that Eastender's favourites Jessie Wallace and Shane Richie will appear together for the first time ever in the stage adaptation of Peter James' The Perfect Murder during a break from Eastenders.

Jessie said: “As soon as I read the script, I knew I had to do it! “Watch out because sparks are going to fly and it’s the perfect murder!”

Victor Smiley and his wife Joan have been married for a long time. But their marriage has reached crisis point and Victor has decided there is only one way to get Joan out of his life forever... but he’s about to get a nasty surprise... As a young Detective Roy Grace starts to investigate his very first homicide case, dark forces intervene and Grace begins to fear that nothing is quite as it seems quite as it seems ……..

Peter James said “It has always been my dream that one day the curtains would rise in a theatre and a play of my work would be performed.  That dream came true in 2014 after a chance meeting with my old friend, producer, Joshua Andrews. The first run of The Perfect Murder, was a sell out success and we have followed that this year with an even more successful run of my best-selling book Dead Simple. To now have Shane Richie and Jessie Wallace star in The Perfect Murder really is another dream come true. Shane has been a fan of my books for a while, as I have been of Shane. He and Jessie have been loved on television by huge audiences over a number of years, which just goes to show how great they are together and I can’t wait to see Shane and Jessie planning to murder each other on stage every night!"

The Perfect Murder will be adapted by Shaun McKenna, and directed by Ian Talbot.

THE PERFECT MURDER 2016 TOUR DATES Tuesday 2 - Saturday 6 February 2016

Cheltenham Everyman Theatre

Monday 8 - Saturday 13 February 2016

Churchill Theatre, Bromley

Monday 15 - Saturday 20 February 2016

Bord Gais Theatre, Dublin

Monday 22 - Saturday 27 February 2016

Theatre Royal, Newcastle

Monday 29 February - Saturday 5 March 2016

King's Theatre, Edinburgh

Monday 7 - Saturday 12 March 2016

Theatre Royal Brighton

Monday 14 - Saturday 19 March 2016

Northampton Derngate

Monday 21 - Saturday 26 March 2016

Cambridge Arts Theatre

Monday 28 March - Saturday 2 April 2016

Coventry Belgrade Theatre