Why a Booktrail?
1930s: The first in the series about real life crime writer Josephine Tey
An Expert in Murder (Josephine Tey 1 )
What you need to know before your trail
An Expert in Murder is the first in a new series that features Golden Age crime writer Josephine Tey as its lead character, placing her in the richly-peopled world of 1930s theatre which formed the other half of her writing life. It’s March 1934, and Tey is travelling from Scotland to London to celebrate what should be the triumphant final week of her celebrated play, Richard of Bordeaux. However, a seemingly senseless murder puts her reputation, and even her life, under threat. An Expert in Murder is both a tribute to one of the most enduringly popular writers of crime and an atmospheric detective novel in its own right.
Travel Guide
London and Josephine Tey
Josephine Tey was one of the pseudonyms created by Elizabeth Mackintosh, the other being Gordon Daviot.
Mackintosh lived in Inverness and divided her time between her home city and London. When she died, she left the bulk of her estate in Inverness to the National Trust for England. There’s a story in that for sure.
Theatres
Richard of Bordeaux was the play which was performed at the New Theatre, now the Noel Coward Theatre in St Martin’s Lane. John Gielgud was its leading actor.
“The dressing room smelt of scent and an electric fire. Outside, a steady stream of traffic passed along the corridor and, whenever the door opened”
Under the name of Daviot, the author wrote many other plays but none were as successful as Bordeaux.The war played a hugely significant role in the book and to the plays reception – but it is ultimately a story about pacifism
This play marked a unique moment of theatrical history.
Streetview Maps
A) London - Noel Coward Theatre
E) London - Verbena Gardens
Booktrail Boarding Pass: An Expert in Murder (Josephine Tey 1 )
Destination: London Author/Guide: Nicola Upson Departure Time: 1930s
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