Jonathan Creek: the Fantom of the Acropolis

Jonathan Creek was an iconic comedy-drama series written by David Renwick. It first aired on BBC One in the UK in 1997 and starred Alan Davies in the lead role, along with Caroline Quentin, Julia Sawalha, Sheridan Smith and Sarah Alexander as Jonathan’s crime-solving partners. It also featured Stuart Milligan as the illusionist Adam Klaus.

The television series – which aired 32 episodes over the course of nearly twenty years and was broadcast around the world – won the BAFTA TV Award for Best Drama Series and a National Television Award for Most Popular Drama Series. Jonathan’s final appearance was in a feature-length story called Daemons’ Roost back in 2016.

Today, David Renwick is happily retired so it’s unlikely Jonathan Creek will ever return to our television screens. However, a couple of years ago, David began exploring the idea of producing a theatrical version of Jonathan Creek and wrote a stageplay called The Fantom of the Acropolis – an all-new story set a decade after the tv series ended which reunites Jonathan and the fan-favourite, Maddy Magellan.

Now, Jonathan Creek fans have the chance to get their hands on a paperback copy of The Fantom of the Acropolis script book published exclusively by Idiot Box Books. If you’ve been yearning for a final howdunnit from the imaginative and inimitable mind of David Renwick, now’s your chance. 

The book was successfully delivered to crowdfunders in Spring 2026 and is now on general sale in our online shop.

The Blurb

Ten years after he escaped death at Daemons’ Roost, Jonathan Creek has returned to his roots as a creative consultant to the stage magician, Adam Klaus.

Joining them on tour is a Czech illusionist called Jana Kablitsky. But someone – or something – else has come with her to London’s Acropolis theatre. One of Jana’s jaded former lovers is stalking her, while the haunting figure of a Hell Hag is prowling the West End stage and threatening to bring the production to its knees. 

Meanwhile, Jonathan is reunited with his former sparring partner, Maddy Magellan, the one-time investigative journalist who’s back from America. 

Together, Jonathan and Maddy must expose the identity of the vicious killer and deduce how an assassin can disappear through an open window without being seen by a guard on the other side, or leaving a single foot print in the freshly laid snow.

The Fantom of the Acropolis is a theatrical script from the macabre and masterful mind of David Renwick. Set a decade after the last onscreen Jonathan Creek adventure, it was written for a stage show to complement the television series incorporating some of its funniest moments. Expect monsters, sirens, vampires and mind-boggling howdunnits. 

The Author

David Renwick is an award-winning British writer, producer and director who’s been entertaining audiences for over 50 years. Renowned for his hit BBC television series, One Foot in the Grave, Jonathan Creek and Love Soup, David’s unique brand of black comedy began with a career writting for Kenneth Williams, The Two Ronnies, Not the Nine O’Clock News, Alexei Sayle and Spike Milligan to name but a few. In the 1980s, David co-wrote a number of sitcoms with Andrew Marshall – including Whoops Apocalypse, which was later turned into a film. But it was his first solo outing in 1990 about the trials and tribulations of Victor Meldrew which catapulted him into the British consciousness. Jonathan Creek followed in 1997, and ran for 32 episodes over the course of nearly twenty years. Today, David is happily retired, but has kindly allowed us to rummage around in his bottom drawer to unearth and publish The Fantom of the Acropolis.

“I’ve explored the idea of a theatrical version of Jonathan Creek ever since we aired the final episode of the show a decade ago. A couple of years back, I got round to drafting a manuscript which would have finally seen Jonathan reunited with the investigative journalist, Maddy Magellan which fans have been asking me about for 25 years now! But staging a production like ours – with live illusions – is slow and expensive, so while we figure out the logistics required to (hopefully) one day bring The Fantom of the Acropolis to the West End, I thought it was high time the story saw the light of day. I hope you enjoy this final chapter (at least for now…) of Jonathan Creek.”

David Renwick.

BUY THE BOOK