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Agatha Christie's Partners in Crime

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Finessing the King

Keep your eye on the queen of hearts

Agatha Christie's "Finessing the King" adapted by Gerald Savory.

Tommy Beresford (James Warwick) and wife/ assistant Tuppence (Francesca Annis) of the international detective agency are getting bored when Tuppence notices an anonymous advertisement in
The Daily Leader (local new paper.)

"I should go three hearts, twelve tricks, Ace of spades, necessary to finesse the king."

Of course it is an obvious secret message. However being clever they figure that the message is some sort of rendezvous. It is to take part at the Three Arts Ball (costume ball) where one of the sleuths gets to dress up as Sherlock Homes and the other as Dr. Watson. One guess as to who gets to be homes.

After the ball is over, like most of the revelers, they go to xxx to have a drink an early breakfast. There they notice a man costumed as the local paper entering a private booth with a woman and coming out alone. We are way ahead of them on the plot

As with most of the "Partners in Crime" series we are fare ahead of them on the whom. The fun is to watch them figure out not only the whom but the other details. This story is a period piece of just after The Great War.

Made for TV and fairly transparent, this film still has all the ambiance of a BBC Agatha Christy production. It is a period piece and employs many major English actors. Detective Inspector Marriott (Arthur Cox) played the newspaper reporter Salcombe Hardy in Dorothy L. Sayers' Have His Carcase (1987).

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The Ambassador's Boots

Solve a crime and have fun to boot

After the Grate World War, Tommy Beresford (James Warwick) and Tuppence (Francesca Annis) are out of work and form a partnership in a detective agency. They eventually marry and continue their detection business. On the surface they look like they are stumbling into the answer of each mystery they solve. But upon further observance they are cunning and resourceful.

In this "The Ambassador's Boots" A story by Agatha Christie and screen play adaptation by Paul Annett, Tommy and Tuppence have just saves someone from an international kidnapping. So at an exclusive party they are introduced to the ambassador from the United States.

Later the Ambassador tells them of a mystery where his bag got mixed up with another. You may have guessed that his bag contained his boots. Even though it seems trivial Tommy and Tuppence are determined to get to the bottom of why the bags were swapped and then the other party denies it ever happened.

For some reason you get the feeling that they are just acting and everyone is just going thru the motions. Do not get discourages as it is part of the plot to get to the bottom of the mystery. You will find that the Partners in Crime" are more cunning and coordinated than they look.

A pearl of great price

After their re-introduction in "The Secret Adversary", it looks like Tommy Beresford (James Warwick) and Tuppence (Francesca Annis) are married and after finishing their first case are looking for a little more action. They get the opportunity to purchase the international detective agency and with the help of their new friend Albert (Reece Dinsdale) set up shop.

Before Tommy can stop her Tuppence promises their first client their 24 hour guaranteed special. If they can pull this off then they will be in with the right crowd to be thought of incase a pink pearl should end up missing.

Made for TV and fairly transparent, this film still has all the ambiance of a BBC Agatha Christy production. It is a period piece and employs many major English actors. Detective Inspector Marriott (Arthur Cox) played the newspaper reporter Salcombe Hardy in Dorothy L. Sayers' Have His Carcase (1987).

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The House of Lurking Death

Death is like a box of chocolates

Agatha Christie's "The House of Lurking death" adapted by Jonathan Hales.

Mary Chilcott (Louisa Rix) receives a box of chocolates. She naturedly shares them with others to find that the chocolates were lased with poison. Not enough to kill but to make everyone sick. Being private and figuring that the anonymous came from someone in that very house, contacts Tommy Beresford (James Warwick) and Tuppence (Francesca Annis) of the international detective agency.

Naturally as with their first two episodes or movies Tommy and Tuppence are both wise beyond their time and do some of the dumbest things that lead them to the solution of the problem. Will they be there in time to save Mary or if not will they be able to figure out who and how it was done. More important why.

As with most of the Partners in Crime series we are fare ahead of them on the whom. The fun is to watch them figure out not only the whom but the other details. This story is a period piece of just after The Great War.

Made for TV and fairly transparent, this film still has all the ambiance of a BBC Agatha Christy production. It is a period piece and employs many major English actors. Detective Inspector Marriott (Arthur Cox) played the newspaper reporter Salcombe Hardy in Dorothy L. Sayers' Have His Carcase (1987).

After the Great War, out of work Captain, Tommy Beresford (James Warwick) accidentally comes across his lifelong friend and pal Prudence "Tuppence" Cowley (Francesca Annis). Tuppence is also out of work. Over their sparse meal they speculate on doing any job of anybody for outrageous fees.

This speculative talk was over heard and the wheels are set in motion when Tuppence is given the opportunity and gives what she thinks is a false name. This sets off a series of events that employs them to find a missing girl and the identity of a mysterious Mr. Brown.

Made for TV and fairly transparent, this film still has all the ambiance of a BBC Agatha Christy production. It is a period piece and employs many major English actors. One actor you can recognize right off is Honor Blackman who played Pussy_Galore in "Goldfinger" (1964).

You will want to get the real skinny on this one

Agatha Christie's "The Case of the Missing Lady" adapted by Jonathan Hale.

The Scene opens with a moaning lady; hovering over her is a brute assistant Muldoon to what looks like a mad doctor and his Brunhilda looking assistant. To make matters worse there is the biggest hypodermic syringe ever conserved by man. It is half full of green glop.

Gabriel Stovington just returned from a two year stint in the artic and is getting the runaround while trying to find his fiancé. He is in need of a detective agency.

After the Great War Tommy Beresford (James Warwick) and wife/ assistant Tuppence (Francesca Annis) buy the Blunt International Detective agency. And with out any background become detectives. By the time you get to this episode they are getting good at it (maybe).

The acting at first make you thing that you are sitting in the front row of a Bernard Shaw play.

Of course it is an obvious secret message. However being clever they figure that the message is some sort of rendezvous. It is to take part at the Three Arts Ball (costume ball) where one of the sleuths gets to dress up as Sherlock Homes and the other as Dr. Watson. One guess as to who gets to be homes.

After the ball is over, like most of the revelers, they go to xxx to have a drink an early breakfast. There they notice a man costumed as the local paper entering a private booth with a woman and coming out alone. We are way ahead of them on the plot

As with most of the "Partners in Crime" series we are fare ahead of them on the whom. The fun is to watch them figure out not only the whom but the other details. This story is a period piece of just after The Great War.

Made for TV and fairly transparent, this film still has all the ambiance of a BBC Agatha Christy production. It is a period piece and employs many major English actors. Detective Inspector Marriott (Arthur Cox) played the newspaper reporter Salcombe Hardy in Dorothy L. Sayers' Have His Carcase (1987).

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"I promise to pay"


After the Grate World War, Tommy Beresford (James Warwick) and Tuppence (Francesca Annis) are out of work and form a partnership in a detective agency. They eventually marry and continue their detection business. On the surface they look like they are stumbling into the answer of each mystery they solve. But upon further observance they are cunning and resourceful.

In this "The Crackler" A story by Agatha Christie and screen play adaptation by Gerald Savory, Tommy and Tuppence are approached by inspector Marriott (Arthur Cox). He has a problem with funny money and needs someone with class to do a little snooping in the hoity-toity crowd to find the culprit(s). The inspector suspects it is a gang.

The partners in crime will be forced to go night clubbing and dancing. There are many suspects and they need to be narrowed down. They are aided by the third detective young Albert (Reece Dinsdale).

While they seem to be lead around by the nose we may be able to figure the plot but are the duo that naive or the cat's meow.

Dorothy L. Sayers Mysteries - Have His Carcase (The Lord Peter Wimsey-Harriet Vane Collection)