My Cousin Rachel at Chichester Festival Theatre REVIEW: 'Helen George succeeds in capturing the flirtatiousness of the title role'

So a draught of Daphne du Maurier at the CFT proved a welcome medicine.

This adaptation of the author’s 1951 novel sees the recently widowed Rachel visiting her late husband’s estate in Cornwall, where she meets his heir – and her cousin – Philip, who becomes infatuated by her exotic Italian beauty.

But letters from the recently deceased Ambrose Ashley to Philip suggest that his death might have been a deliberate attempt to inherit his fortune... and the hedonistic Rachel is the prime suspect.

As the titular character, Call The Midwife’s Helen George ditches the platinum curls of Trixie Franklin for a black veil and tumbling brown locks, and succeeds in capturing the flirtatiousness of the role.

In terms of stage presence, no other actor comes close; but at times I found her take on an Italian accent to be jarring.

Similarly, there were moments where the pacing of the plot blindsided me.

The play’s driving force rests on a slow descent into paranoia as Philip and the audience wrestle with whether Rachel is a misunderstood woman that attracts tragedy, or a cunning murderess.

So for him to suddenly strangle her in one scene before their relationship returned to normal felt rushed and unearned.

And that’s not mentioning a dream sequence in which cast members wore cardboard masks of Ambrose's face, which came off as comical.

Do not get me wrong – it was entertaining, the theatrical equivalent of watching an Agatha Christie adaptation on the telly.

But had a bit more emotional groundwork been laid before to the plot’s tragic climax, this could have been brilliant rather than just enjoyable.

Until February 1.