By Caroline Crampton
Unravelling the mysteries behind classic detective stories
The grandfather of detective fiction still has a lot to teach us. Many thanks to my guest, Jim Noy. You can find out more about his work at his blog, theinvisibleevent.com. His book The Red Death Murders is available only from Amazon...
A box of chocolates can conceal a poisonous secret. Find out more at shedunnitshow.com/deathbychocolate. To support the podcast, be part of a superb bookish community, and get two bonus episodes a month, become a member of the Shedunnit Book Club now at...
Please join me for a long-awaited guided tour of the role that dogs play in detective fiction. Books mentioned: — My Lady's Money by Wilkie Collins — The Hound of the Baskervilles by Arthur Conan Doyle — A Study in Scarlet...
Let's spend some time with G.K. Chesterton, the first president of the Detection Club. Sources: — "The Hammer of God" by G.K. Chesterton from The Innocence of Father Brown — "Errors About Detective Stories" by G.K. Chesterton in the Illustrated London News NB: Links to...
Agatha Christie knew more than most about digging up corpses. There are no major spoilers in this episode, but be aware that there are mentions of plot points from the books listed below. Books and sources: — The Murder of Roger Ackroyd by...
A good detective story has a recognisable rhythm and plot points. But how did these tropes come about? And what happens when you break the rules? This episode of Shedunnit was first released in February 2019 and is repeated here in...
Reading my way through the last hundred years, from the 1920s to the 2020s, one mystery at a time. My previous attempt at this reading project can be found in the episode A Century of Whodunnits. Books mentioned: — Clouds of Witness...
India has a long and deep tradition of storytelling and mythology. What happens when this heritage is combined with the tropes of golden age detective fiction? Thanks to my guest R.V. Raman. His first whodunnit is A Will To Kill and you...
The golden age of detective fiction was obsessed with identity. The reason why? An extremely melodramatic Victorian legal case involving shipwreck, Shetland ponies and a tangled aristocratic inheritance. Please be aware that there may be spoilers for the following books in...
Do you know your ack emma from your pip emma? Would you wear the cat's pyjamas? Are you, in fact, a goop? Helen Zaltzman joins me to delve into some baffling language from golden age detective fiction. Thanks to my guest...
How much did Agatha Christie really know about dead bodies? Thanks to my guest for this episode, Carla Valentine. She is a trained mortuary technician and the technical curator at Barts Pathology Museum in London. She's also the author of ...
Why did she stop writing detective fiction as WW2 approached? This is the sixth and final episode of Queens of Crime at War, a six part series looking at what the best writers from the golden age of detective fiction did...
Caught between two very different worlds, WW2 forced this queen of crime to become better acquainted with her homeland. This is the fifth episode of Queens of Crime at War, a six part series looking at what the best writers from...
Something happened to the Scottish writer during WW2 that made her want to write mysteries again. This is the fourth episode of Queens of Crime at War, a six part series looking at what the best writers from the golden age...
For Albert Campion's creator, the war was her salvation. This is the third episode of Queens of Crime at War, a six part series looking at what the best writers from the golden age of detective fiction did once that period...
Her WW2 mysteries are best of all. This is the second episode of Queens of Crime at War, a six part series looking at what the best writers from the golden age of detective fiction did once that period came to...
Agatha Christie had a very productive WW2. This is the start of Queens of Crime at War, a six part series looking at what the best writers from the golden age of detective fiction did once that period came to an...
Who would be the Hastings to your Poirot? What kind of mystery would you like to write? What would you do if you came across a corpse? In this special episode to celebrate Shedunnit's third anniversary, Caroline's husband Guy takes...
What happens when two people write a whodunnit together? Thanks to my guests, Cordelia Biddle and Steve Zettler. They write separately under their own names and together under the pseudonym Nero Blanc. The whole Crossword Mysteries series can be found at...
Agatha Christie was the most successful female playwright of all time. She also wrote some detective novels you might have heard of. Julius Green is the author of Agatha Christie: A Life in Theatre, available in paperback now at all good...
This summer, you can still travel to the murderous destinations visited by your favourite detectives. While I take a holiday myself, please enjoy this classic episode of Shedunnit. First aired in July 2020, it's all about how and why golden age...
Her plots are second to none. But is the Queen of Crime a true literary great? Thanks to my guest, Sophie Hannah. Her latest Poirot continuation novel is The Killings at Kingfisher Hill and is available from all good booksellers. Find...
This sensational case from 1860 ignited a wave of detective fever that we still haven't recovered from. Thanks to my guest Robin Stevens — you can hear her on two previous episodes of the show, Back to School and Death Sets Sail...
Where is St Mary Mead, anyway? My guide to Agatha Christie's England is now available to pre-order from the publisher at shedunnitshow.com/map (ships 19th July 2021). It's also available to order from Amazon, Waterstones, Blackwell's and other booksellers. An...
Young detectives, and young readers, play an important part in the history of detective fiction. Many thanks to my guest, Maureen Johnson. Her newest YA mystery, The Box in the Woods, is out now. Find out more at her website...
How do you write a 1920s style detective novel that's set in the 2020s? Thanks to Elly Griffiths, aka Domenica De Rosa, for joining me today to talk about her love of golden age crime fiction and how she put that...
Many thanks to my guest, Nicole Glover. More information about her work is available at nicole-glover.com, and her first book, The Conductors, is out now in the US and the UK. The inspiration for this episode was Nicole's article "Who...
Reading through the twentieth century, one murder mystery at a time. Find more information about this episode at shedunnitshow.com/century. The ten books I talk about are: — The Return of Sherlock Holmes by Arthur Conan Doyle (1905) — Trent's Last Case by E.C....
How do you say goodbye to a beloved detective? Agatha Christie, of course, made a mystery out of it. Thanks to my guest, Mark Aldridge. You can find out more about his work at markaldridge.info and order a copy of his...
There aren’t many characters who are recognisable just from a silhouette, but Hercule Poirot is one of them. Thanks to my guest, Mark Aldridge. You can find out more about his work at markaldridge.info and order a copy of his new...
If you can solve a crossword, you can solve a murder. Thanks to my guest, Hamish Symington. You can find out more about his work at hamishsymington.com and order a custom cryptic crossword from him at customcrypticcrosswords.com. There are no major spoilers...
Exploring the thriving tradition of classic Japanese whodunnits. Thanks to my guests, On Nomoto, grandson of honkaku writer Seishi Yokomizo, and Daniel Seton, commissioning editor at Pushkin Press. No major spoilers about clues or endings in this episode. However, there is some mention or...
First aired in November 2018, this classic Shedunnit episode is all about the coded gay characters and references in books from the golden age of detective fiction like Agatha Christie’s A Murder is Announced and Josephine Tey’s Miss Pym Disposes. Find...
What was the first murder mystery, really? No major spoilers about clues or endings in this episode. However, there is some mention or discussion of the books listed below. Sources and further information: — The Mysterious Affair at Styles by Agatha Christie —...
Before there was CSI, there was Bernard Spilsbury. No major spoilers about clues or endings in this episode. However, there is some mention or discussion of the books listed below. Please be aware there is a brief mention of suicide at...
Nothing could bad could possibly happen here, the inhabitants of the peaceful English village say to each other. Until the first poison pen letter arrives. No major spoilers about clues or endings in this episode. However, there is some mention or...
The original golden age of detective fiction in the 1920s followed on from a devastating global pandemic. Is it any wonder, then, that we’ve read so much crime fiction in 2020? And why do we find murder mysteries a comforting...
I’ve read a lot of Agatha Christie, but I’ve never read all of her books in order. What insights are there to be had by doing so? Christie completists Catherine Brobeck and Kemper Donovan of the All About Agatha podcast...
Is it still worth reading a whodunnit if you know… who done it? Thanks to my guests Jim Noy of The Invisible Event and Kate Jackson of Cross Examining Crime. Jim is on Twitter @invisible_event and Kate is @ArmchairSleuth. NB: Despite the...
To get to the bottom of why the Nile is a murder mystery location that has bewitched readers for decades, I decided to talk to an author who has just published an Egypt based whodunnit: Robin Stevens. We talk about...
The day the First World War ended, 11 November 1918, marked the beginning of a new era in which detective fiction would flourish. How did Britain go from “peace at last” to “whodunnit”? Thanks to my guest (and husband) Guy Cuthbertson....
Snobbery and murder, all served up perfectly for you on a silver tray. NB: There are spoilers in this episode! Please check the list of books mentioned below and come back later if there are any titles there for which you...
He was one of the most influential crime novelists of the 1920s and 1930s, but has languished somewhat in obscurity since. A troubled, dark, incredibly innovative writer: to really get to know Anthony Berkeley, you need to dive deeply into...
Why has the murder of Julia Wallace on the night of 20 January 1931 haunted detective novelists for decades? Well, it all comes back to the telephone call. Become a member of the Shedunnit Book Club and get bonus audio, listen...
A body is found in a sealed chamber, definitely murdered, but there is no way the culprit can have got in or out. How was it done? Special thanks to my guest Jim Noy. He writes about detective fiction at theinvisibleevent.com,...
Renée read her first detective novel in the 1930s. She hasn’t stopped since. Special thanks to my guest Renée. Her first crime novel is The Wild Card. Become a member of the Shedunnit Book Club and get bonus audio, listen to ad...
It started with dinner and ended with a group of crime writers swearing an oath on a skull. Special thanks to my guest Martin Edwards. His latest novel is Mortmain Hall and he’s on Twitter as @medwardsbooks. Become a member of the Shedunnit Book Club...
If a woman needs a room of her own and £500 a year to write fiction, what does she need in order to write crime fiction? Special thanks to my guest Francesca Wade. Her book is Square Haunting: Five Women, Freedom and...
This summer, you can still travel to the murderous destinations visited by your favourite detectives. Find links to all the books and sources mentioned at shedunnitshow.com/murderonholiday. Become a member of the Shedunnit Book Club and get bonus audio, listen to ad free...
She wrote over 70 detective novels and won the praise of that most stern of critics, Dorothy L. Sayers. Yet golden age author E.C.R. Lorac is now a mystery to most modern crime fiction fans. What happened? Find links to all...