CWA Dagger Awards and the Specsavers Crime Thriller Awards

The results of the CWA Dagger Awards and the Specsavers Crime Thriller Awards are out!

Congratulations to all the winners and nominees.

 

The CWA Gold Dagger – sponsored by Constable & Robinson

The Rage by Gene Kerrigan (Harvill Secker)

The other nominees were –

The Flight by MR Hall

Bereft by Chris Womersley 

Vengeance in Mind by NJ Cooper

© Midaspr

The John Creasey New Blood Dagger – sponsored by Goldsboro Books

A Land More Kind than Home by Wiley Cash (Bantam)

The other nominees were -

Heart-Shaped Bruise by Tanya Byrne

What Dies in Summer by Tom Wright

Good People by Ewart Hutton

© Midaspr

The Ian Fleming Steel Dagger – sponsored by Ian Fleming Publications

A Foreign Country by Charles Cumming (HarperCollins) 

The other nominees were –

Dare Me by Megan Abbott

The Fear Index by Robert Harris

Reamde by Neal Stephenson

The Specsaver’s Bestseller Dagger 2012:

      Kathy Reichs

©Ali Karim

The Film Dagger

      Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (Studio Canal)

The TV Dagger

      Sherlock: Series 2 (Hartswood Films/BBC1)

The International TV Dagger

 The Bridge (Danmarks Radio, Sveriges Television/BBC4)

The Best Actress Dagger

      Claire Danes for Homeland (Teakwood Lane Productions, Showtime Productions, Cherry Pie Productions, Keshet Media Group, Fox 21/Channel 4)

The Best Actor Dagger

      Benedict Cumberbatch for Sherlock (Hartswood Films/BBC1)

The Best Supporting Actress Dagger
Kelly Macdonald for Boardwalk Empire (HBO/Sky Atlantic)

The Best Supporting Actor Dagger

      Martin Freeman for Sherlock (Hartswood Films/BBC1)

Best Detective Duo: 

      Lewis - DI Robbie Lewis & DS James Hathaway

The press notice is below –

The Specsavers Crime Thriller Awards 2012

Winners revealed

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

London, Thursday 18^th October, 2012—Cactus TV and ITV3, in partnership with the Crime Writers’ Association (CWA), are pleased to announce the winners of the Specsavers Crime Thriller Awards 2012, a showcase of the UK’s most wanted crime fiction and drama, hosted by Bradley Walsh. 

A host of famous faces from TV, Film and Publishing which included Benedict Cumberbatch, Martin Freeman, Rupert Penry-Jones and Steven Berkoff gathered on the black carpet for a gala awards ceremony celebrating the very best offences of the year at London’s Grosvenor House Hotel. The awards ceremony, now in its fourth year, formed a crescendo to ITV 3’s six week season of crime and drama programming including a specially commissioned documentary series called Crime Connections, featuring crime writers, actors, producers and directors.

Winners on the night were:

<    Specsaver’s Bestseller Dagger 2012: Kathy Reichs

<    CWA Gold Dagger for Best Crime Novel of the Year sponsored by Constable and Robinson: Gene Kerrigan, The Rage

      CWA Ian Fleming Steel Dagger for Best Thriller, sponsored by Ian Fleming Publications: Charles Cumming, A Foreign Country

      CWA John Creasey New Blood Dagger, sponsored by Goldsboro Books: Wiley Cash, A Land More Kind than Home

Gene Kerrigan’s The Rage won the CWA Gold Dagger. His suspense driven storm of violence set in the backstreets of Dublin proved unbeatable, an immense accolade given the literary oomph of his co-nominees: MR Hall’s The Flight, Chris Womersley’s Bereft and Vengeance in Mind by NJ Cooper, previously Chair of the Crime Writers’ Association.

Gene Kerrigan commented: "I'm aware of the writers who have previously received the Gold Dagger and I'm honoured to have my name on the same page."

The CWA Ian Fleming Steel Dagger for Best Thriller was taken home by Charles Cumming for A Foreign Country. Despite being regarded as one of the best of the new generation of British spy writers, A Foreign Country was by no means assured of success, pitted as it was against some monumental thrillers: Megan Abbott’s Dare Me, which revealed the bitter power rivalries of a cheerleading squad, Robert Harris’s much lauded The Fear Index andNeal Stephenson’s Reamde which portrays the world of hacking.

Charles Cumming said "For spy writers, the Steel Dagger is our Booker prize, so I'm thrilled to have won such a prestigious award. Some great writers have picked up the Steel Dagger, including Henry Porter, Dan Fesperman and Tom Rob Smith. I'm honoured to have joined their ranks."

The CWA John Creasey New Blood Dagger was awarded to Wiley Cash, named the best new crime author of the year for A Land More Kind than Home.Cash toughed it out against serious competition from Tanya Byrne’s Heart-Shaped Bruise, Tom Wright’s What Dies in Summer and Ewart Hutton’s Good People to win the title for his tale of the smarting underbelly of religious fanaticism of his Deep South youth.

Wiley Cash said "As an American writer, it's a shock and a real honor to win an award in a genre with such a proud British tradition."

The Bestseller Dagger was awarded to Kathy Reichs. All five shortlisted authors were also inaugurated into the Crime Thriller Hall of Fame alongside such all-time greats as Colin Dexter, Agatha Christie and Arthur Conan Doyle.

Kathy Reichs said “Given the extraordinary company in which I find myself nominated for this award, I can't express how shocked and delighted I am.  This is truly an unexpected honor.”

Amanda Ross, creator and executive producer of the Awards, said: “This has been a fantastic year for the genre, and it was great to see so many star authors and actors at the event.”

The cream of acting talent is also recognised at the Specsavers Crime Thriller Awards with categories for Best UK and International Crime Series, Best Actor, Best Actress in a Crime series and Best Film. The British public also voted for their favourite detective duo by phone vote. Winners are as follows:

Best Detective Duo: 

      Lewis - DI Robbie Lewis & DS James Hathaway

The Film Dagger

      Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (Studio Canal)

The TV Dagger

      Sherlock: Series 2 (Hartswood Films/BBC1)

The International TV Dagger

      The Bridge (Danmarks Radio, Sveriges Television/BBC4)

The Best Actress Dagger

      Claire Danes for Homeland (Teakwood Lane Productions, Showtime Productions, Cherry Pie Productions, Keshet Media Group, Fox 21/Channel 4)

The Best Actor Dagger

      Benedict Cumberbatch for Sherlock (Hartswood Films/BBC1)

The Best Supporting Actress Dagger

      Kelly Macdonald for Boardwalk Empire (HBO/Sky Atlantic)

The Best Supporting Actor Dagger

      Martin Freeman for Sherlock (Hartswood Films/BBC1)

####

The Winners of the Specsavers Crime Thriller Awards 2012 are as follows:

The CWA Gold Dagger – sponsored by Constable & Robinson

      The Rage by Gene Kerrigan (Harvill Secker)

The John Creasey New Blood Dagger – sponsored by Goldsboro Books

      A Land More Kind than Home by Wiley Cash (Bantam)

The Ian Fleming Steel Dagger – sponsored by Ian Fleming Publications

      A Foreign Country by Charles Cumming (HarperCollins)

The Specsaver’s Bestseller Dagger 2012:

       Kathy Reichs

The Film Dagger

      Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (Studio Canal)

The TV Dagger

      Sherlock: Series 2 (Hartswood Films/BBC1)

The International TV Dagger

      The Bridge (Danmarks Radio, Sveriges Television/BBC4)

The Best Actress Dagger

      Claire Danes for Homeland (Teakwood Lane Productions, Showtime Productions, Cherry Pie Productions, Keshet Media Group, Fox 21/Channel 4)

The Best Actor Dagger

      Benedict Cumberbatch for Sherlock (Hartswood Films/BBC1)

The Best Supporting Actress Dagger

      Kelly Macdonald for Boardwalk Empire (HBO/Sky Atlantic)

The Best Supporting Actor Dagger

      Martin Freeman for Sherlock (Hartswood Films/BBC1)

NOTES TO EDITORS:

Media enquiries:

Please contact Eleanor Riches at Midas Public Relations on 02073617860 or Eleanor.riches@midaspr.co.uk  

Pictures of the awards can be supplied upon request.

Specsavers Crime Thriller Awards

The Specsavers Crime Thriller Awards 2012 took place on Thursday, 18^th October at London’s Grosvenor House Hotel and will be televised on ITV3 on the 23^rd October. The 2012 Awards are the fifth annual produced by Cactus TV for ITV3, and the fourth annual sponsored by Specsavers and in conjunction with the Crime Writers' Association.

The vote for the Specsavers Bestseller Dagger is promoted by Agile Marketing and is not endorsed, controlled or associated with ITV or ITV3.

                                                                                                                                                                               

Specsavers

Specsavers was founded by Doug and Dame Mary Perkins in 1984 and is now the largest privately owned opticians in the world. The couple still run the company, along with their three children. Their eldest son John is joint managing director. Specsavers has almost 1,600 stores throughout the UK, Ireland, the Netherlands, Sweden, Norway, Finland, Denmark, Spain and Australia. Specsavers was voted Britain’s most trusted brand of opticians for the eleventh year running by Reader’s Digest in 2012. More information can be found at: www.specsavers.co.uk.

Cactus TV

Cactus TV is an independent production company run by husband and wife team Simon and Amanda Ross. The company have produced over 3000 hours of television. Cactus formatted the Book Awards and brought them to television for the first time in 2004. They devised and ran the Richard & Judy Book Club which grew into 8 successful series of The Specsavers TV Book Club, the longest running ad-funded deal in the TV industry. Cactus’ other productions include Saturday Kitchen for BBC1, Hairy Bikers Food Tour of Britain for BBC2, The Roux Scholarship and The Roux Legacy, Rachel Allen, Galaxy British Book Awards and 8 years of the Richard & Judy show live from Cactus studios.

ITV3

ITV3 is the UK’s second most popular digital channel and its focus on character driven narrative and drama helps the channel attract an upmarket audience. ITV3 is available on Freeview (channel 10), Freesat (115), Sky Digital (119) and Virgin Media (116).

Crime Writers’ Association

The Crime Writers’ Association has a membership of over 500 writers of fiction and non-fiction. Its main aims are to promote the crime genre and to support professional writers. The CWA has been

providing social and professional support for its members for more than half a century, as well as administering the prestigious Dagger Awards. The Daggers name and Crossed Daggers logo are

registered Trade Marks of the Crime Writers’ Association, and are used under licence. For further information on the CWA: www.thecwa.co.uk or contact info@thecwa.co.uk.

Agile Marketing

Agile Marketing is a publishing-specialist promotions & project management agency. They project manage the Crime Thriller Awards in the book trade, liaising with publishers and retailers to ensure the campaign to raise the profile of Crime Fiction is maximised in store and amongst readers. They also manage the supporting website: www.crimethrillerawards.com

  

Eleanor Riches
Midas Public Relations

10-14 Old Court Place, London W8 4PL
T: 020 7361 7876
midaspr.co.uk | twitter.com/midaspr

Stylist and Faber and Faber new crime author revealed!

Stylist and Faber and Faber reveal the incredible winner
of their Crime Fiction Competition

London, 17 October – Eight months ago Stylist magazine and publishing house Faber and Faber set out to find Britain’s hottest new crime fiction talent – with a £5,000 book deal to be won. After 364 astounding entries, three intensive days of reading entries and a shortlist judged by Ruth Rendell and Stylist editor Lisa Smosarski, the winner has finally been revealed as Kate Griffin, author of the brilliant Kitty Peck And The Music Hall Murders.

Despite all of the entries’ incredible level of talent, Griffin’s opening 6,000 words immediately grabbed the judges’ attention. Ruth Rendell explains, “It’s original, well and simply written and has a horrible but moving subject.” Hannah Griffiths, publishing director at Faber and Faber agrees, “Something about Kate Griffin’s imagination and the way she captures it on the page is very special and rare. Her protagonist – and antagonist – are entirely memorable. And the story is rich with character and mystery.”

Set against the backdrop of the Victorian music hall, the story focuses on the intelligent and immensely likeable heroine Kitty Peck who is drawn into a crime-ridden seedy underworld run by the monstrously compelling, Lady Ginger. Kate, 49, from St Albans wrote the entire chapter in a weekend (sitting in her pyjamas), “I know it sounds weird but the idea just popped into my head. It’s based around the world’s oldest surviving music hall, Wilton Hall in London’s East End.” Having previously worked as a journalist and PR for The Society For The Protection Of Ancient Buildings, Kate is embracing her new role as an author. “I’m incredibly excited and daunted about finishing the novel. My husband is also thrilled. I keep catching him looking at holiday flats in Cornwall.”

However, it wasn’t just Kate Griffin who has been discovered in the course of the competition. The second prize, a £1,750 writing course at Faber Academy, goes to the brilliantly ambitious Markers by stenographer Alexis Rigg, 29, from London. The high-concept thriller blew Stylist associate editor Alix Walker away, “The premise gripped me the second I started reading it. It reminds me of The Hunger Games and was exactly what I wanted to find – writing that could set future literary trends, rather than follow them, and a story begging to be turned into a film. I think Alexis will benefit hugely from Faber’s course.”

Faber and Faber will publish Kate’s first novel next July and have high hopes it will be the first of many more.

For more information contact Faber and Faber’s publicity manager Alex Holroyd at alexh@faber.co.uk or on 020-7927 3885.

NOTES FOR EDITORS

About Shortlist Media Limited:

Shortlist Media is the award-winning ‘freemium’ media company. Independently owned, the company was established in the summer of 2007. In total, Shortlist Media has won more than 30 industry awards for editorial, commercial and publishing excellence since it began and, now in its fifth year, is trading profitably. In 2011, the company was awarded Most Innovative Business in the Fast Growth Business Awards.

In October 2009, the company launched Stylist. Described recently as “the most influential magazine launch in the last five years” by Enders Analysis, Stylist has become the UK’s number one women’s fashion and lifestyle weekly with an audited ABC of 431,266. We’ve won 12 awards since launch, most recently Editor of the Year for Lisa Smosarski and Consumer Brand of the Year at this year’s magazine Oscars, the PPA Awards.

Shortlist Media’s offices are situated in the heart of Bloomsbury, at 26-34 Emerald Street, London WC1N.

Up The Junction Thriller Night

Something exciting to look forward to!

Up The Junction Thriller Night

Featuring readings by: 

Alex Marwood, Martyn Waites/Tania Carver, Julia Crouch & Chris Roberts

and a screening of the short film

Book of the Dead directed by Jesse Lawrence

hosted by the wonderful Stella Duffy on

Tuesday 30th October

Whirled Cinema: Railway Arch 260, Hardess Street, Loughborough Junction, SE24 0HN (off Herne Hill Road)

Doors open at 7.30pm

£5 Entrance / £3 Concessions

Book news!

Some book news including news from Frankfurt!

Mantle publisher Maria Rejt has also picked up the worldwide rights to a crime trilogy by Norwegian historian Olav Lahlum.  Mantle plan to publish all three books in 2014.

HarperCollins imprint Avon has snapped up a series of self-published novels by British author Mark Sennen. His Detective Inspector Charlotte Savage books which are police procedurals set in Plymouth and Dartmouth have already sold over seventy-three thousand e-copies in the UK and have spent 250 days in the Kindle bestseller chart.  Avon plan to publish Touch the first of the three crime novels that bought initially as an ebook in January 2013, followed by a paperback in April.

Headline have picked up four new crime novels by crime writer Anne Granger. Two of the titles will be in her Cotswold village crime series, featuring detective duo Campbell and Carter; two will be in her Victorian crime series, including Scotland Yard's Inspector Ben Ross and his wife Lizzie. The first title in the new contract is lined up for July 2014.

HarperFiction have signed a three-book deal with historical novelist Harry Sidebottom, for a series of novels charting the bloodshed of Imperial Rome.  The author will write three books in a series called Throne of the Caesars, with the first title, Iron and Rust, planned for publication in spring 2014.  This series will be set around the tumultuous "Year of the Six Emperors" in 238 A.D.  He is best known for his Warrior of Rome series, published by Michael Joseph.

Headline have also pre-empted world rights for two books by author Stephen Jones.  The first book The String Diaries has been described as “a captivating supernatural thriller which follows a historical mystery to its nail-biting contemporary conclusion”.

Anthony Award results

© Ali Karim 2012

The Anthony Awards were given out on Saturday evening and the results are as follows -

BEST NOVEL
A Trick of the Light by Louise Penny [Minotaur]

The other nominees were -

The End of Everything by Megan Abbott [Reagan Arthur/Little, Brown]

Hurt Machine by Reed Farrel Coleman [Tyrus]

The Drop by Michael Connelly [Little, Brown]

One Was a Soldier by Julia Spencer-Fleming [Thomas Dunne/Minotaur]

BEST FIRST NOVEL

Learning to Swim by Sara J. Henry [Crown]

The other nominees were -

Nazareth Child by Darrell James [Midnight Ink]

All Cry Chaos by Leonard Rosen [The Permanent Press]

Who Do, Voodoo? By Rochelle Staab [Berkley Prime Crime]

The Informationist by Taylor Stevens [Crown]

Purgatory Chasm by Steve Ulfelder [Thomas Dunne/Minotaur]

Before I Go to Sleep—S.J. Watson [HarperCollins]

BEST PAPERBACK ORIGINAL
Buffalo West Wing by Julie Hyzy [Berkley Prime Crime/Tekno]

The other nominees were -

The Company Man by Robert Jackson Bennett [Orbit/Hachette]

Choke Hold by Christa Faust [Hard Case Crime/Titan]

Death of the Mantis by Michael Stanley [HarperCollins]

Fun & Games by Duane Swierczynski [Mulholland]

Vienna Twilight by Frank Tallis [Random House]

BEST SHORT STORY

"Disarming" by Dana Cameron, EQMM June'11, p.24

The other nominees were -

"The Case of Death and Honey" by Neil Gaiman, A Study In Sherlock, p.167 [Bantam]

"Palace on the Lake" by Daryl Wood Gerber, Fish Tales: The Guppy Anthology, p.184 [Wildside]

"Truth and Consequences" by Barb Goffman, Mystery Times Ten, p.121 [Buddhapuss Ink]

"The Itinerary" by Roberta Isleib, MWA Presents The Rich and The Dead, p.189 [Grand Central]

"Happine$$"—Twist Phelan, MWA Presents The Rich and The Dead, p.276 [Grand Central]

BEST CRITICAL NONFICTION WORK

The Sookie Stackhouse Companion by Charlaine Harris, ed. [Ace]

The other nominees were -

Books, Crooks and Counselors: How to Write Accurately About Criminal Law and Courtroom Procedure by Leslie Budewitz [Quill Driver/Linden]

Agatha Christie: Murder in the Making: More Stories and Secrets from Her Notebooks by John Curran [HarperCollins]

On Conan Doyle: or, The Whole Art of Storytelling by Michael Dirda [Princeton University Press]

Detecting Women: Gender and the Hollywood Detective Film by Philippa Gates [SUNY Press]

Congratulations go to all the winners but especially to Charlaine Harris and Dana Cameron who both won Macavity Awards on Thursday evening for their books.

Shamus Award results

Shamus Award winners Michael Wiley and Duane Swierczynski 
(© 2012 Ali Karim).

The Private Eye Writers of America gave out the Shamus Awards on Friday evening.  The prizes were awarded during a riverboat dinner ceremony.
The results are as follows -

Best Hardcover P.I. Novel:
A Bad Night’s Sleep, by Michael Wiley (Minotaur)
The other nominees were -
Bye Bye Baby by Max Allan Collins (Forge);
1222, by Anne Holt (Scribner);
When the Thrill Is Gone, by Walter Mosley (Riverhead);
The Highly Effective Detective Crosses the Line, by Richard Yancey (Minotaur)

Best First P.I. Novel:
The Shortcut Man, by P.G. Sturges (Scribner)
Also nominated were -
The Plot Against Hip Hop, by Nelson George (Akashic);
Claire DeWitt and the City of the Dead, by Sara Gran (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt);
The Ocean Forest, by Troy D. Nooe (Ingalls);
The Stranger You Seek, by Amanda Kyle Williams (Bantam Press)

Best Paperback Original P.I. Novel:
Fun & Games, by Duane Swierczynski (Mulholland)
Also nominated were -
Quarry’s Ex, by Max Allan Collins (Hard Case Crime);
Threat Warning, by John Gilstrap (Kensington);
Serial, by John Lutz (Kensington);
Long Pig, by James L. Ross (Perfect Crime)

Best P.I. Short Story:
“Who I Am,” by Michael Z. Lewin (Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine, December 2011)
Also nominated were -
“A Bullet from Yesterday,” by Terence Faherty (EQMM, January 2011);
“Mr Monk & the Sunday Paper,” by Lee Goldberg (EQMM, July 2011);
“Vampire Slayer Murdered in Key West,” by Michael West (EQMM, September/October 2011);
“Dancer in a Storm,” by L.A. Wilson (Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine, January/February 2011)

The Hammer--a commendation celebrating a memorable private-eye character or series, and named after Mickey Spillane’s Mike Hammer--was presented to Nate Heller the character created by Max Allan Collins.

Results of the Macavity and Barry Awards from Bouchercon 2012 Cleveland, Ohio

The opening ceremony and reception has taken place at Bouchercon on Thursday evening.  The event took place at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

Peter James with his Barry Award - © Ali Karim 2012

The Awards given out were the Macavity Award and the Barry Award.

The results are as follows –

Barry Award

Best novel – The Keeper of Lost Causes (aka Mercy) by Jussi Adler Olsen

Best first novel – The Informationist by Taylor Stevens

Best British Novel – Dead Man’s Grip by Peter James

Best Paperback Original – Death of the Mantis by Michael Stanley

Best Thriller – The Informants by Thomas Perry

Best Short Story – The Gun Also Rises by Jeff Cohen

Don Sandstrom Fan Award was awarded to Allen J Hubin

Macavity Award -

Best Mystery Novel – Clare De Witt and the City of Dead by Sara Gran

Best First Mystery – All Cry Chaos by Leonard Rosen

Best Mystery Non-fiction – Sookie Stackhouse Companion by Charlaine Harris Best Mystery Short Story – Disarming by Dana Cameron

Sue Feder Memorial Historical Mystery – Dandy Gilver and the Proper Treatment of Bloodstains by Catriona McPherson

Congratulations to all the winners!

Also awarded was the Dilys Award which is given by the Independent Mystery Booksellers Association to the book which the member booksellers have most enjoyed selling.  The Dilys Award is named after  Dilys Winn, who founded the first specialty bookseller of mystery books in the United States.  The Award was given to S J Rozan for Ghost Hero.

Ali Karim accepting the award on behalf of Jussi Adler Olsen © Ali Karim 2012

The Short Mystery Fiction Society also re-announced the fact that author Bill Pronzini was awarded this year’s Edward D. Hoch Memorial Golden Derringer Award.

Thanks to my erstwhile colleague Ali Karim for the results and the photographs!

David Suchet talks Poirot and Me!

Fans of Agatha Christie, Hercule Poirot and David Suchet will be pleased to learn that in Autumn 2013 Headline will publish Poriot and me.  

Shots were delighted to receive the press release below from Headline Publishing Group

For immediate release Thursday 4th October

Headline’s Emma Tait has acquired the world rights in Poirot and Me by David Suchet, writing with Geoffrey Wansell.

Filming is about to commence on the very last episodes of the international television phenomenon Agatha Christie’s Poirot. These final five episodes will mean that all the Poirot stories have been filmed with Suchet in the starring role. In Poirot and Me David Suchet will reflect, for the first time, on the 24 years that he has played the role and the fondness he has formed for the eccentric Belgian detective, and his fans worldwide.

The book was bought at auction from Michael Alcock at Johnson and Alcock. Headline plans to publish in autumn 2013.

Emma Tait: ‘I am so excited to be publishing this book, which offers a unique opportunity in television publishing. Rather than an outsider's overview, it is the story of an iconic role told by the actor himself and it is fantastic to be working so closely with David and Geoffrey. I believe it will be a very special book and a wonderful way for David to bid farewell to his old friend Hercule Poirot.’

David Suchet and Geoffrey Wansell: ‘We are thrilled to be given this chance by Headline to bring his portrayal of Hercule Poirot to life for his millions of fans around the world. It's a wonderful – and rare – opportunity for a character actor to be able to explain his life and craft and exactly how he brought such a famous character to television audiences in more than eighty countries.’

Extracts from book:

“He was as real to me as he had been to her, a great detective, a remarkable man, if, perhaps, just now and then, a little irritating. He had inhabited my life every bit as much as he must have done hers as she wrote thirty-three novels, more than fifty short stories, and a play about him – making Poirot the most famous fictional detective in the world alongside Sherlock Holmes.

But how had it come to this? How had I come to inhabit his morning jacket and pin-striped trousers, his black patent leather shoes and his elegantly brushed grey Homburg hat for so many years? What brought us together? Was there something in me that found a particular echo in this short, tubby man in his sixties given to pince-nez and saying ‘chut’ instead of ‘ssh’?

Looking back now, these many years later, I suspect in my heart there was.”

“In the end Brian and I came up with a moustache that we both thought exactly conveyed what Dame Agatha had in mind – a small, neat, carefully waxed one that curled upwards at each end, and where the tip of each of end of the moustache would be level with the tip of my nose. For us it was the best-looking waxed moustache in England , and exactly what Hercule Poirot must have.”


For more information please contact:
Samantha Eades, Publicity Manager, Headline Publishing Group
0207 873 6320 / Samantha.Eades@headline.co.uk / @sameades