LoveHistory's trial by jury returns with a brand new Liverpool trial this March

After the success of its launch in 2017, Lovehistory are excited to announce the return of Trial By Jury which is coming back to Liverpool’s St George’s Hall this March, with a brand new case to solve.

From Thu 15 – Sat 17 March 2018, this compelling immersive theatre production will put the audience in the driving seat and give them the power to decide the fate of those on trial. Guilty or not guilty? You decide!

The show was first introduced in April last year, and following its success, returned again in August with a new case.

This year, with the shows being performed on the weekend of St. Patrick’s Day, the case, which will be kept secret until the first night, will have an Irish theme and will be based on true events from an actual case tried in Liverpool.

The exciting courtroom drama is brought to life by history specialist theatre company Lovehistory – the creative minds behind The Catacombs of Liverpool’s Darkest History Tours and Murder at St George’s Hall Series.

Set in the courts of St George’s Hall where many infamous Liverpool cases were once tried, this is the perfect evening for any amateur sleuth. Put those detective skills to the test as details of a real-life historical court case are revealed.

The evening commences with audiences being witness to a grisly historical murder. The full details of the crime will then be revealed through compelling performances, re-enactments and narrated by a very own Sherlock Holmes style detective who will piece together the full story and gather the evidence for the trial.

After all the harrowing details of the crime have been laid out, the prosecution and defense then present their arguments – it is then in the hands of the audience, who become the jury for the case; given the task of balancing all the evidence from both sides and deciding a verdict. The fate of the accused will be in their hands as they await nervously in the dock for the outcome.

Will it be the Gallows? A lifetime of hard labour? Or will it be mercy? Only the audience will have the power to make that decision, with punishments and sentencing relative to the historical period of the crime.

Once the judge has passed sentence from the jury’s verdict, see how close the outcome was to the real-life sentence which will then also be revealed.

Audiences at August’s event were responsible for deciding the fate in the trial of infamous Sea Captain Henry Rogers, and the Murder of the young British sailor, Andrew Rose in a shocking case from 1857.

After witnessing the tragic details unfold of the harrowing treatment and murder of Andrew at the hands of the Captain, audiences in their roles as jurors battled it out in the Jury Room to decide Captains fate.

During the three nights, the jurors reached a unanimous decision to send the defendant to the Gallows!

Will the defendant at this trial be subjected to the same end? Or will they have the luck of the Irish on their side in this St Patrick’s Day special and be found not guilty?

The crime and court-case planned for the upcoming event will be kept top secret until the evening of the first performance.

Judy McLean Creative Director of Lovehistory said: “We are delighted to be bringing Trial By Jury back for 2018! We were overwhelmed by the feedback and audience response we received after the last 2 events and their engagement and interaction within the performances was great to watch.

“There is such a strong Irish history in Liverpool’s culture which we are excited to explore in this new case to tie in with St Patrick’s Day. We will be keeping the details of the case secret until the first night, but I can guarantee that audiences won’t be disappointed.”

St George’s Hall Manager Alan Smith added: “We are very pleased to welcome Lovehistory back to St George’s Hall. The previous Trial By Jury events have proved to be incredibly popular with our audiences and I feel that this is a testament to the quality of the content Lovehistory present in their events. They are always entertaining and engaging for audiences, whilst never steering away from the historical accuracy of the gritty facts of the trials that they are based on.

“It is a very unique event, one which we are proud to programme for our venue. I would encourage people to book early as I imagine tickets won’t be around for long.”