Sutton who? Reform crime chief pulls out of 127-date theatre tour

Cancel the babysitter: the live event of 2027 has been cancelled almost as soon as it was announced.

Not Oasis’s inevitable third coming, however – but that of Colin Sutton, Reform’s new police and crime commissioner for Norfolk, who just last week announced he was going on a whopping 127-date tour of the UK, regaling theatre audiences with anecdotes from his time as a detective.

Sutton had come in for heavy criticism for his jaunt across Britain, announced just two months after he was elected to the PCC role in East Anglia. Residents wondered how he would manage to spend several months touring regional theatres while simultaneously overseeing a constabulary with 1,897 police officers, 1,318 staff and an annual budget of £204 million.

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Now the former cop has reluctantly pulled out, cancelling the Makings of a Murderer tour. “What surprised me and what made me reflect and think again was the reaction that I got personally from a number of residents,” he told North Norfolk District Council’s scrutiny committee, apparently bemused at locals who thought they might not be best served by their police and crime commissioner treading the boards in Bradford and Scarborough.

“I’m not sure I could do 127 dates because it was ridiculous, but I could have done some. What I don’t want to do is to give the impression to anybody that I don’t take this role seriously and I’m not going to do a good job on this.

“So that’s why my decision has been: OK, I’m not legally obliged to do this, I’m not going to do it.” What a trooper!

In a statement, the promoters of the show, Entertainers, said: “Through our recent discussions with Colin, it has become clear that he had underestimated the overall demands of the forthcoming tour alongside his other professional commitments.

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“What has also been abundantly clear throughout those conversations is how seriously Colin takes his responsibilities to the people of Norfolk, and how deeply committed he is to serving them.

“We are now working closely with Colin to find a route forward and those discussions are ongoing.”

Good news for Sutton fans. In the interim, tickets appear to still be on sale via the website Ents24, although there are recommendations for those now left bereft by its cancellation. Apparently, “fans who like Colin Sutton also like” Reanimation, a tribute act for US noughties skate-rock band Linkin Park.