Simon Brett

Carole and Jude are faced with trying to uncover who is responsible for the murder of a Polish immigrant. Jude finds herself under suspicion when she happens to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. Carole unbends from her usual puritanical stance sufficiently to enter a bookies. But it's all in the course of detection.

Ex-Princess Etheline, daughter of the exiled king of Mitteleuropia, has been kidnapped during a visit to Tawcester Towers, ancestral seat of the Dukes of Tawcester, and ducal family honour demands that she should be rescued.

The Dowager Duchess entrusts the task to her son, the Right Hon. Devereux Lyminster, known universally as 'Blotto'. He is, of course, terribly handsome, honourable and brave, but as sadly deficient in the brains department as his sister 'Twinks' is gifted.

So Blotto sets off, accompanied by trusty former batman and chauffeur, Corky Froggett. They drive across many countries to Mitteleuropia, a realm now ruled by a usurper, the ex-king's brother, where they suspect the princess has been taken.

Can brave Blotto and loyal Corky rescue Ethelinda, or will they meet their end in the evil clutches of King Vlatislav?

Due to financial hardships at Tawcester Towers, the Dowager Duchess has decreed that the only way the family fortunes can be restored is to marry Blotto off... to an American!

Tawcester Towers has suffered an unwelcome injection of distant cousins. Count Igor and Count Lyudmilla Bashusky had to flee Russia after the Revolution. Their arrival causes a stir, and it's up to Blotto and Twinks, that indefatigable duo, to provide a solution to get them back to Russia.

The Dowager Duchess decides to sell off some family possessions, which have been consigned to the attics. The valuer spies a sarchophagus decorated with hieroglyphs. Twinks starts to translate: 'Anyone who desecrates this shrine will be visited by the Pharoah's curse...' - just as Blotto prises the lid off!

When Carole Seddon retires to Fethering she doesn't expect to have a neighbour like Jude, but when Carole discovers a body on the beach only Jude believes her. Together they investigate, facing up to dangers they never knew existed.

Murder, from the simply bizarre to the downright nasty, is the theme of this collection of short stories from Simon Brett. The 12 stories include one featuring the boozy actor-detective Charles Paris.

Actor and sleuth Charles Paris is back in this full-cast BBC radio dramatisation of Simon Brett's novel, starring Bill Nighy

Locked down with his semi-detached wife Frances, Charles has thrown himself into a new career as a handyman, becoming quite the DIY expert. He's developed muscles, stopped smoking and even cut back on the booze.

Then his agent, Maurice, offers him the chance to get back on stage - and in a West End play, no less. The star, Justin Grover, asked for him specifically: but Charles has reservations. Grover was cocky enough when they were both young hopefuls; now he's the star of a massive TV fantasy series, and the play - a verbatim piece set in a monastery - is dire.

So why has Justin signed up for it? He certainly doesn't need the money, unlike Charles. The cast is drearily male, and before long Charles is hitting the Scotch again. When he drunkenly stumbles over the corpse of a fellow actor, Charles panics, leaving the body to be discovered by someone else. But he soon regrets lying to the police, and driven by guilt and self-preservation, he resolves to find the murderer...

This sparkling adaptation by Jeremy Front stars Bill Nighy (Emma, Love Actually) as Charles Paris, with Suzanne Burden as Frances and Jon Glover as Maurice.

Credits
Written by Simon Brett
Adapted by Jeremy Front
Directed by Sally Avens

Cast
Charles Paris........................Bill Nighy
Frances........................Suzanne Burden
Maurice........................Jon Glover
Justin ........................Tony Turner
Lydia ........................Ria Marshall
Kit ........................Joseph Ayre
Brendan ........................Jonathan Kydd
Nina ........................Marilyn Nnadebe
D.S. Dalby ........................Stewart Campbell
Alice/Peaches ........................Elinor Coleman
Kelly/Dervla ........................Jane Slavin
Bethan ........................Christine Kavanagh
Neil ........................Simon Ludders

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4, 3-24 September 2021

Charles Paris lands a minor part in Eastbourne's Christmas production of Cinderella, but when he stumbles across a body beneath Eastbourne Pier, the pantomime rehearsals slip into chaos. It's up to Charles to put his renowned sleuthing skills to the test to find out who really killed his fellow cast member - and why.

Ellen Curtis runs her own business as a declutterer. She is used to encountering all sorts of weird and wonderful objects in the course of her work, but she has never before encountered a dead body. When Ellen stumbles across the corpse of a young woman, suspicion immediately falls on the deceased homeowner's son, who has recently absconded from prison. Discovering a link between the victim and her own past, Ellen sets out to uncover the truth. But where has her best friend disappeared to? And is Ellen really prepared for the shocking revelations to follow?

Charles Paris, failed actor and amateur sleuth, takes on the role of a forklift truck driver in a promotional video and finds himself in an adventure involving corporate politics, product marketing and the world of sales conferences.

Jude's life has been turned upside-down thanks her new man, Piers Targett, who's keen to get her involved in his hobby - or obsession - of Real Tennis. But when one of Piers' friends dies on the court in suspicious circumstances, Jude finds herself caught up in the police investigation.

Ten little masterpieces from one of the country's favourite mystery writers.

Madeleine Severn has always looked much younger than her years and had her pupils falling in love with her. Paul Grigson is the latest student to fall for Madeleine but his feelings for her are becoming obsessive.

Charles Paris uncovers a complicated fraud at the BBC when a beautiful studio manager is murdered. Clues are hidden in seemingly innocent radio announcements and lead to a trap which nearly spells the end for Charles.

Actor-sleuth Charles Paris is on a three month tour of the farce "Not on Your Wife", when someone in the cast murders an old friend.

Chaired by Simon Brett, this intriguing, interactive panel show challenges professional crime novelists to put their experience and expertise to the test as they try to unravel various mind-bending mysteries. Each episode features a death and a denouement - with various red herrings and misdirections along the way. As the murder scenario is described and the clues laid out, our writer-detectives take turns cross-examining the suspects. Among the baffling cases they tackle are a dead Dowager Duchess, a 1930s murder at sea, a pantomime crime, a monastery mystery and an Elizabethan court killing.

Having been booked to give a talk at Fethering Library, successful author Burton St Clair invites his old friend Jude to come along. What Jude hadn't been suspecting however was that the evening would end in sudden, violent death. More worrying, from Jude's point of view, is the fact that the investigating police officers seem to be convinced that she herself was responsible for the crime.

The delightful musings of a baby who systematically brings chaos and havoc into the lives of his parents. Contains 'How To Be A Little Sod'; 'Little Sod's Next Step' and 'Not Another Little Sod'.

Mrs Pargeter and Truffler Mason are determined to find out who has framed Concrete Jacket by placing a body in the wine-cellar.

Mrs Pargeter becomes involved in a murder investigation at a health farm;

It is her characteristic generosity rather than her love of animals that finds Mrs Pargeter supporting her friend, Jasmine Angold, at a charity reception for PhiliPussies, whose worthy aim is to rehabilitate stray cats from the Greek island of Atmos into caring English homes. But the evening is to have unexpected consequences. At the event, Mrs P is taken aback to meet a woman who claims to be the sister of her late husband, the much-missed Mr Pargeter. This surprising encounter leads to unwelcome digging into past secrets, the discovery of a body in Epping Forest, an eventful trip to Greece - and unexpected danger for Mrs Pargeter.

Carole Seddon regrets her decision to join the Board of Bracketts, which is overseeing the conversion of Bracketts, an Elizabethan house into a museum. But when a skeleton and then a second body are found in the grounds, Carole is once again involved in a murder investigation.

The Devereux is a nice residential hotel which caters for a nice class of guest. But the arrival of Mrs Pargeter seems to act as a catalyst of disaster for everyone connected to it. On the morning after her arrival the corpse of one of the frailer residents is found at the foot of the main stairs.

In these final four series, Anna is trying to remain calm and centred in the midst of the familial chaos that surrounds her. Having graduated from university, her niece Emily is preparing for marriage and motherhood. But her wedding plans cause ructions, as Victoria and Charlotte make her celebrations all about them. The baby's birth sends Victoria into competitive granny mode - while Anna receives a heart-warming surprise.

Having dallied with a string of lovers, Charlotte finally gets engaged - but there are more twists to come in her complicated love life. Her professional life is in turmoil too: with daughter Gisele starring in a TV series, will Charlotte keep chasing her own big break as an actress, or try and make it as a model instead? As the sisters look forward to new beginnings, one thing is certain - they'll always have each other...

An actor's career plumbs new depths when he acts the part of a murder victim and gets drawn into a real investigation.

Helen and Ben have recently moved into a lovely semi-detached house in an up-and-coming area, and are eager to restore their home to its original character (complete with open fireplace in the living room and milkmaid's yoke on the wall). They're also keen to host dinner parties and mix with the right sort of people - to the bafflement of their elderly neighbour, Mrs Kelly, who's lived in the neighbourhood all her life and preferred it before it filled up with middle-class incomers. In these twelve episodes, Ben and Helen join an action committee to oppose the opening of a new restaurant on their street, contemplate the attractions of the countryside and squabble over spending Christmas with Helen's mother in West Wittering. Plus, Helen flirts with feminism, Ben contemplates private education, and the couple unite to fight the forces of materialism...

Charles Paris lands himself a part in Twelfth Night, but is soon suspicious that someone is trying to kill him.

TV producer Laura Fisher sets out to have a baby before her 30th birthday. But on the day of her son's birth, she discovers something about her child's father that shocks her to the core. Twenty years later, Laura's past begins to close in on her and she is forced to face up to a legacy of murder.

CONTENT WARNING: contains scenes of a sexual nature and explicit language

Events manager Rosie Burns is used to coping with the unexpected, at work and at home. When her daughter Kate accidentally became a teenage mum, Rosie stepped in, raising her granddaughter Jo so that Kate could pursue her career in international banking. Now Jo works in the family firm alongside accountant Bob (who's nursing an unrequited love for Rosie) and Tess (whose love life never ceases to amaze). Things are ticking along nicely, until Rosie gets a phone call out of the blue - after fifteen years working abroad, Kate's lost her job and is coming home...

In these four series, Rosie's life is shaken up as her dysfunctional family and recalcitrant clients cause problems on both the personal and the professional front.

August in Edinburgh, and thousands of performers of all stripes have flocked to the Fringe Festival. Among them is Charles Paris filling in at the last minute after a student actress breaks a leg and has to drop out. Showcasing an earnest one-man show in a sea of stand-up comics is a bit of a gamble, but at least he's acting, and with a Charles Paris production, what could possibly go wrong? Charles is sharing a venue with a group of student actors, but when one of the performers dies in a freak stabbing, the actor-cum-amateur sleuth smells a murderous rat and decides to investigate.

When the killer sets his sights on him, Charles realises that he must be getting close to the truth - despite not having a clue what's going on... Help arrives in the form of his agent, Maurice, in town scouting for talent, and Charles' 'semi-detached' wife, Frances, who inadvertently finds herself directing Charles' show. The three become drawn into the mystery, and find themselves playing detectives. This unlikely trio are way out of their depth, but when has that ever stopped Charles Paris?

Appearing in his own one-man show on Thomas Hood at the Edinburgh Festival, middle-aged actor Charles Paris finds himself falling for a gorgeous young girl. He also finds himself being dragged into a complex murder investigation involving the death of a fading pop star, a bomb scare in Holyrood Palace and a suicide leap from the top of the Rock.

Carole Seddon and her friend Jude find themselves in the midst of some horseplay, after stumbling upon the body of ex-equestrian at Long Bamber Stables.

Grant and Kim Roxby hope that their first dinner party will be a talking point. It is, when a body is discovered in the cellar. Their friend Jude and her neighbour Carol, budding amateur detectives, quickly decide to investigate.