Suffice to say it involves a hammer and nails - not to mention a large tough-skinned water melon!

Somewhat surprisingly, these grisly goings-on come from the pen of the queen of cosy crime, Agatha Christie.

But, those of a nervous disposition will be relieved to hear, the moment of murder is left to the imaginations of the audience for it's part of a rivetting drama staged in the style of a 1950s BBC radio play.

The Agatha Christie Theatre Company, always extremely welcome visitors to Windsor, and even more so this time as among the cast is no less a theatrical luminary than Tom Conti, is touring again with three Christie half hour plays originally written for the wireless.

All three rate among her more obscure works though the second, The Yellow Iris, is notable as being the first to feature Christie's most popular detective, Hercule Poirot.

The company has gone to great lengths to create the effect of a BBC recording studio of 60 years and more ago. The performers, scripts in hand and all in immaculate evening dress, stand in front of a line of those big old chunky microphones under a red illuminated 'on air' sign. Everything looks so authentic, even the metal and canvas chairs the actors tip-toe back to when not participating.

On one side of the stage is a carefully-laid-out collection of props, with which sound effects man Alexander S Bermange expertly, and with perfect timing, creates all the desired noises for the various plays, from chinking tea cups and clunking doors to footsteps in mud and the aforementioned hammer and nails murder!

He even provides piano accompaniment for the nightclub scenes, having written the music to accompany the original words by acclaimed lyricist Christopher Hassall.

It's tempting to close one'es eyes as the action unfurls to get a true impression of how these plays originally  sounded, booming out from one of those big bakelite wireless sets which would have been at the centre of most families' evening entertainment in those pre-TV days.

But not to see the action is to miss the hectic comings-and-goings at the microphones, the secrets behind the ingenious sound effects, the sheer joy on the faces of the participants and the subtle visual interplay between them.

There are plenty of chances to chuckle but the actors ensure that the evening remains on the respectful side of parody and give due reverence to the scripts.

Tom Conti appears to enjoy himself more than anyone, waving to the audience as he ambles on and asking them: "Have you seen this before?" On being told the affirmative he replies: "Well it hasn't changed much!"

He's right, of course. One of the plays was part of a similar production at Windsor a few years ago. We all know what to expect. The plots are typical Christie, well-to-do people in swish locations caught up in dodgy goings-on and providing us with plenty of clues.

The cast all show a mastery of switching accents and characters. Jenny Seagrove, a mainstay of the Agatha Christie Theatre Company, shines as usual, while there are equally fine performances from Louise Faulkner, Simon Linnell, David Osmond, Adrian Metcalfe (who does the finest steam train impression this side of the Bluebell Railway) and Elizabeth Payne, who transforms from exotic South American dancer to Cockney housewife with ease.

A night when nostalgia is well and truly in the air and a skillful band of actors - and a hard-working sound effects man - create a fascinating reminder of broadcasting in days gone by.

Murder on Air is at The Theatre Royal, Windsor, until Saturday August 23. Contact the box office on 01753 853888 orwww.theatreroyalwindsor.co.uk.