Watched "They Do It With Mirrors" last night. There's some really fantastic stuff there, but the explanation of the murder is very rushed at the end. It's never explained whether or not
Carrie-Louise was being poisoned, or whether (I think this the case) Lewis put poison in the medicine sample he gave to the police, to make it look as if she was being poisoned ... but then, Gulbrandsen wouldn't have noticed a deterioration in Carrie-Louise's condition over time if she wasn't being poisoned ... but
Watched "They Do It With Mirrors" last night. There's some really fantastic stuff there, but the explanation of the murder is very rushed at the end. It's never explained whether or not
Carrie-Louise was being poisoned, or whether (I think this the case) Lewis put poison in the medicine sample he gave to the police, to make it look as if she was being poisoned ... but then, Gulbrandsen wouldn't have noticed a deterioration in Carrie-Louise's condition over time if she wasn't being poisoned ... but
In the book when Miss Marple is explaining all the end, she said Carrie-Louise wasn't being poisoned. She (CL) had said no one would want to poison her and, Miss Marple said, she was right, no one did, it was Lewis trying to make it look like she was being poisoned.
In the book I don't think there was anything about Christianan and CL's health. He was just noticing what was going on with the money that Lewis was fiddling. The reason he killed him, of course.
His murder was cleverly done, I always thought! Edgar giving the impression the two of them were in the study when he was on his own while Lewis did the murder.
Favourite is A Muder is Announced, there's just something about it that makes it stand out for me.
That's one of my favourites as well. Someone saw Kevin Whately in the telly version of that and was so impressed at how he played a policeman he was cast as Lewis. He must be very grateful to Agatha Christie for that! lol
I have a soft spot for the telly version of Murder at the Vicarage because I love Paul Eddington as the vicar!
I was always intrigued by the book of that story when the vicar - the narrator - referred to himself as 'elderly' with a young wife. When I first read the book I assumed he must be in his 60's, but Griselda his wife was always referred to as 'young' and as she was 'nearly 20 years younger than him' that would have made her in her 40's!
Turns out she was 25 so he was under 45. How is that elderly?!
And I never understood why anything was made of the age difference when most of the couples Agatha Christie put together in her books had the women over 20 years younger than the men!
You get men knocking 50 ending up with a young woman in her early 20's. The men she wrote in their 50's were always tanned and fit and healthy (presumably because they DID end up with woman half their age!) - something else that made 43/44 year old vicar referring to himself as elderly seen funny!
The first book she had published - Styles - the wife was 20 years older than the husband. I loved the irony that she wrote the disgust her stepson felt about that!
The characters in the telly versions of Miss Marple stories always seem to be older than the book version. I wonder why that was.
Mitzi in the telly version of Murder is Announced seemed to be in her 40's. In the book she's a young woman in her 20's.
In Pocketful of Rye, the eldest son Percival is in his early 30's. Jennifer his wife is 30. The actors playing them were nearer 40 than 30.
And of course Leonard and Grizelda from Vicarage were played by actors older than 43/44 and 25!
I watched one on Sunday set in a large country house being run to train bad boys. One of the teenage tearaways was a young Jake, as in Strictly and East Enders, with a headful of red hair.:D
I watched one on Sunday set in a large country house being run to train bad boys. One of the teenage tearaways was a young Jake, as in Strictly and East Enders, with a headful of red hair.:D
The characters in the telly versions of Miss Marple stories always seem to be older than the book version. I wonder why that was.
Mitzi in the telly version of Murder is Announced seemed to be in her 40's. In the book she's a young woman in her 20's.
I think A Murder Is Announced is the best of them, and is actually better than the book. One of the improvements is that Mitzi in the book is just a comedy foreigner. In the TV adaptation, she becomes Hannah, whose behaviour is explained by her having escaped central Europe during the holocaust, having lived through all sorts of horrors around her. The character is actually quite tragic and very well written and played. (In the more recent ITV adaptation, Mitzi is played by Catherine Tate ... say no more).
I watched one on Sunday set in a large country house being run to train bad boys. One of the teenage tearaways was a young Jake, as in Strictly and East Enders, with a headful of red hair.:D
I watched that one at the weekend and didn't spot Jake Wood til I saw his name in the closing titles, then I had to rewind in order to see him!
Just for fun how about ranking the wonderful Hickson Marples. My entry.
1 A Murder is Announced.
2 The Body in the Library.
3 The Moving Finger
4 Sleeping Murder
5 4.50 from Paddington
6 The Murder at the Vicarage
7 A pocketful of Rye.
8 Nemesis
9 At Bertrams Hotel
10 The Mirror Crack'd from Side to Side
11 They do it with Mirrors
12 A Caribbean Mystery
Comments: 'A Murder is Announced' is as perfect a TV drama as will ever be and 'The Body in the Library' wasn't far behind. The plot of 'At Bertrams Hotel' was a duffer but is was so well done.
1 A Murder is Announced.
2 Nemesis
3 The Murder at the Vicarage
4 Sleeping Murder
5 4.50 from Paddington
6 A Caribbean Mystery
7 A pocketful of Rye.
8 At Bertrams Hotel
9 The Mirror Crack'd from Side to Side
10 They do it with Mirrors
11 The Body in the Library.
12 The Moving Finger
I love that Joan Hickson's final line as Miss Marple is "More tea vicar?" ... just sums up the twinkle in the eye that the series always had.
Just for fun how about ranking the wonderful Hickson Marples. My entry.
1 A Murder is Announced.
2 The Body in the Library.
3 The Moving Finger
4 Sleeping Murder
5 4.50 from Paddington
6 The Murder at the Vicarage
7 A pocketful of Rye.
8 Nemesis
9 At Bertrams Hotel
10 The Mirror Crack'd from Side to Side
11 They do it with Mirrors
12 A Caribbean Mystery
Comments: 'A Murder is Announced' is as perfect a TV drama as will ever be and 'The Body in the Library' wasn't far behind. The plot of 'At Bertrams Hotel' was a duffer but is was so well done.
The book At Bertram's Hotel is a differ anyway, not the dames greatest work. But a murder is announced is probably th best Miss Marple for sheer Christie type plot.
Though the latest adaptations did use my favourite Christie book in to Miss Marple, when Endless Night wasn't, but what makes that book so good is the narration from the murderer.
I haven't bothered with the ITV "Marples" recently, but the 1970 Endless Night movie (Hywel Bennett, Britt Ekland, Hayley Mills) is great!
Seriously if you liked the film with Hywel Bennet, you will love the book, the really obvious twist is so fantastically done you will still be shocked. Fantastic.
Comments
... and we shouldn't forget her appearance as Mrs Kidder in 'Murder She Said'
Loved the music as well.
In the book when Miss Marple is explaining all the end, she said Carrie-Louise wasn't being poisoned. She (CL) had said no one would want to poison her and, Miss Marple said, she was right, no one did, it was Lewis trying to make it look like she was being poisoned.
In the book I don't think there was anything about Christianan and CL's health. He was just noticing what was going on with the money that Lewis was fiddling. The reason he killed him, of course.
His murder was cleverly done, I always thought! Edgar giving the impression the two of them were in the study when he was on his own while Lewis did the murder.
That's one of my favourites as well. Someone saw Kevin Whately in the telly version of that and was so impressed at how he played a policeman he was cast as Lewis. He must be very grateful to Agatha Christie for that! lol
I have a soft spot for the telly version of Murder at the Vicarage because I love Paul Eddington as the vicar!
I was always intrigued by the book of that story when the vicar - the narrator - referred to himself as 'elderly' with a young wife. When I first read the book I assumed he must be in his 60's, but Griselda his wife was always referred to as 'young' and as she was 'nearly 20 years younger than him' that would have made her in her 40's!
Turns out she was 25 so he was under 45. How is that elderly?!
And I never understood why anything was made of the age difference when most of the couples Agatha Christie put together in her books had the women over 20 years younger than the men!
You get men knocking 50 ending up with a young woman in her early 20's. The men she wrote in their 50's were always tanned and fit and healthy (presumably because they DID end up with woman half their age!) - something else that made 43/44 year old vicar referring to himself as elderly seen funny!
The first book she had published - Styles - the wife was 20 years older than the husband. I loved the irony that she wrote the disgust her stepson felt about that!
The characters in the telly versions of Miss Marple stories always seem to be older than the book version. I wonder why that was.
Mitzi in the telly version of Murder is Announced seemed to be in her 40's. In the book she's a young woman in her 20's.
In Pocketful of Rye, the eldest son Percival is in his early 30's. Jennifer his wife is 30. The actors playing them were nearer 40 than 30.
And of course Leonard and Grizelda from Vicarage were played by actors older than 43/44 and 25!
That's They do it with Mirrors.
I think A Murder Is Announced is the best of them, and is actually better than the book. One of the improvements is that Mitzi in the book is just a comedy foreigner. In the TV adaptation, she becomes Hannah, whose behaviour is explained by her having escaped central Europe during the holocaust, having lived through all sorts of horrors around her. The character is actually quite tragic and very well written and played. (In the more recent ITV adaptation, Mitzi is played by Catherine Tate ... say no more).
I watched that one at the weekend and didn't spot Jake Wood til I saw his name in the closing titles, then I had to rewind in order to see him!
1 A Murder is Announced.
2 The Body in the Library.
3 The Moving Finger
4 Sleeping Murder
5 4.50 from Paddington
6 The Murder at the Vicarage
7 A pocketful of Rye.
8 Nemesis
9 At Bertrams Hotel
10 The Mirror Crack'd from Side to Side
11 They do it with Mirrors
12 A Caribbean Mystery
Comments: 'A Murder is Announced' is as perfect a TV drama as will ever be and 'The Body in the Library' wasn't far behind. The plot of 'At Bertrams Hotel' was a duffer but is was so well done.
2 Nemesis
3 The Murder at the Vicarage
4 Sleeping Murder
5 4.50 from Paddington
6 A Caribbean Mystery
7 A pocketful of Rye.
8 At Bertrams Hotel
9 The Mirror Crack'd from Side to Side
10 They do it with Mirrors
11 The Body in the Library.
12 The Moving Finger
I love that Joan Hickson's final line as Miss Marple is "More tea vicar?" ... just sums up the twinkle in the eye that the series always had.
The book At Bertram's Hotel is a differ anyway, not the dames greatest work. But a murder is announced is probably th best Miss Marple for sheer Christie type plot.
Though the latest adaptations did use my favourite Christie book in to Miss Marple, when Endless Night wasn't, but what makes that book so good is the narration from the murderer.
Seriously if you liked the film with Hywel Bennet, you will love the book, the really obvious twist is so fantastically done you will still be shocked. Fantastic.