A Murder is Announced 18/18 - Agatha Christie

[JonFrumTheFirst]

As usual with Christie, there are moochers trying to get their hands on 'family money.' Usually its a will. Did anyone ever just get a job in the UK in those days? It seems like England consisted or wealthy people, family parasites, and the servant class.

[thisherecat2]

Hickson is so brilliant here.

[jdsowa]

anyone know how old Phillipa (Nicola King) was here?  So very pretty.

[erik0098]

How can Edmund be part of the stage management (in Miss Marple's words) and almost ruin the whole thing (according to the inspector)?

[324wilson]

There would never be another Miss Marple like Joan Hickson!

[RCHairbrush]

Go on. Let the pig lady kill her.

Seriously, I prefer Joan Hickson as Miss Marple, but I think I'd rather have Geraldine McEwan as my own aunt. She seems like she could be a Hell of a lot of fun.

[jmuslvr]

I recall that in two earlier episodes, Dora Bunner slips up and calls "Lettie" by her real name, "Lottie". No one seems to notice except Miss Marple. I imagine that the others just thought that Dora was getting senile and confusing the two sisters.

[jmuslvr]

The Joan Hickson version is the best one. The McEwan version is simply dreadful.

[JonFrumTheFirst]

@jmuslvr Agreed. Unwatchable. Apparently some people disagree. To me it's like watching a Jimi Hendrix tribute band. Just no point. I watched one of those part way through and it was closer to Murder She Wrote than MIss Marple. They had Miss Marple out collection clues and bossing the policeman around. Totally out of character.

[jmuslvr]

Joan Hickson is the best Miss Marple.

[eckesg2]

Another important clue were the dead flowers that Dora said she had picked the day before the murder. Charlotte emptied the water from that little vase to make the lights fuse so the flowers died.

[yaslylovesanime]

I absolutely adore miss marple but I do not like the way she waits until there are at least 3 murders before solving the murder. And the strange thing is that she already had a suspicion from the start, here it was the fire that wasn't lit and the cat who bumped over the vase. She could have easily have saved that poor woman, whatever her name was.

[ellandelachapelle]

All you who love Joan Hickson. Please watch the interview with her. (and all 3000 persons showing up at the railway station. To great her and David Suchet.)

[dashergirl13]

Joan Hickson was THE best Miss Marple EVER!! May she rest in peace.

[tatibetathy]

Beautifully done!!!! I love the way country life is also part of the movie: english tea, the village style, cows moving about... everyone was perfect.

A 5 stars!!!! Thanks for posting.

[SYzyFEKejszon]

Ursula Howells - here as Miss Blacklock - what a beauty! RIP.

[julzbo]

Thank you for posting!

[DRush76]

"A Murder Is Announced" has always been one of my favorite Christie novels, since I was a teenager. And I am happy to see that this adaptation is first-rate. One of the best Christie movie adaptations I have seen.

[MusicLoverBrian1]

@DRush76

I agree, defintely one of the best A.C. film adaptation! It was faithful to Christie's plot, the characters were true to the ones in the book and I love how this film was longer than the usual Miss Marple in the Joan Hickson series. All of the actors/actresses were perfectly cast. Defintely a first-rate adaptation and in my book flawless. This is what a true A.C. fan dreams of: a film that stays true to A.C.'s plot and characters not straying too far even IF there are changes made.

[ripples28]

This miss marple reminds me of a little observant bird perched on a tree branch....fragile yet so smart that nothing can harm her

[B11211]

Thanks for uploading this. It was fabulous.

[tetraeder11]

i have some good ideas what should i make whit the inspector... imho he's a sexy one!

[CassieLopez]

Wonderful, wonderful adaptation!! Excellent acting, excellent writing, good characters clear through. Thanks for posting!

[BlueLarkFly]

After all,it is very unwise to murder someone at her own house!

[GiniaKat]

This is my absolute favourite adaptation of my favourite Miss Marple novel. I like all the actors, but especially Miss Blacklock and Hinch.

[AwesomeNNastyElegant]

@deathbinder:thank you for the answer-i will read it;)

[deathbinder]

interesting reminds me of Sherlock Holmes famous quote "When you have eliminated the impossible, what remains, no matter how improbable, must be the truth"

Great ppl think alike. Agatha Christie and Aurthur Conan Doyle. Both great in their own rights.

[habsmeister09]

I wholeheartedly agree. From The Sign of Four.

[AwesomeNNastyElegant]

i`m not sure if the ending seems logical to me-she killed so many people just to be a rich old women?if you look at her lifestyle you don`t think that she did need the money so neccesarily-and perhaps she would have died herself after getting all the money...too much effort for nothing in my opinion;)...although the movie was one of the best of the series,i think

[deathbinder]

@AwesomeNNastyElegant if you read the book, Miss Marple explains it very well. Sorry the explanation is too long to write here...

[Protectobot]

@AwesomeNNastyElegant BINGO. She must have thought she was going to live a LONNNNNNNNG time to make it worth waiting to get the money while killing anyone who gets in her way, even though her twin sister somehow died young (an accident, maybe). On the other hand, if she THINKS she's not gonna live much longer, then risking getting caught wouldn't be a big deal, cos she might have thought her life was already close to an end.

[KingReneTama]

So amazing.

Gotta love Agatha Christie.

[SickForest]

Ahother thing,I think that the plot was incomplete or the story cause I was thinking that Haymes was in complot with Craddock, Ms Marple, Fletcher and Edwards saying that she was Pip (leaving in suspense who or where´s Pip)but I completely forgot that she was together with the "Little Paddocks´s family" so It can´t be done that way je, somebody have lose itself with the details? je... I might never be able to solve the plot before gets unfolded :P... I´ll keep reading so maybe one day :).

[SickForest]

...& a story record when the real Lotty is healed in Switzerland... Oh I see XP... Still I can´t find (physically speaking) the page... Please somebody tells me the chapters so I can sleep well XD... (Sorry my english, I´ve enjoy the videos by the way)

[SickForest]

I have one doubt... I´ve read the book, but I can´t find, once I get to this point of the story (where Ms. Marple tells the hole story), how does she knows that Letty dies more or less one week after Lotty is healed? I know that it have to be in the change of the personalities (lotty for Letty) cause Lotty takes that chance to "live for real" so the letters must say so... A conection between an information of the date when "Charlotte" dies and "Letty" quit from her gob with Randall &...

[madaboutgw]

Bravo! Just wonderful :)

[jlaurson]

Bravo.

[gandharwazalwar]

LOL House of all dummies!

[Hallowed21]

Thank you very much for uploading this. I finished reading the book earlier today and rushed to watch this. Awesome show! o/

[camilleoctogone]

very good !

[thedarkofthebleeding]

i don't know about you. but i the case isn't completely solved

[ljrdlw]

Someone asked in a previous segment what the significance was of Ms. Blacklock holding the pen in such and odd way when she began writing a note to the Vicor. This is my supposition. Leticia Blacklock was supposed to be a educated and competent woman of the world. She worked for a secretary for many years, so she had to have had years of experience using pens to write letters, take notes, etc. The was Charlotte (parading as Leticia) held the pen showed a lack of proper schooling.

[ljrdlw]

Notice how she carefully placed the pen in her hand and then put it between the wrong fingers. A professional secretary would have been picked up a pen with simple ease. Think about it. What competent secretary would pick up and hold a pen that way? It's a small thing, and it may mean nothing, but I think perhaps Miss Marple saw it and thought it was odd that a former secretary wouldn't know how to properly use a pen. Charlotte, on the other hand, was much less educated than her sister.

[harunrathore]

That is really a very good suggestion, but I think it is wrong.

In the novel, it is said that Letty/Lotty suffered from athritis which made it difficult for her to write. That was, however, a good side effect because Mrs Goedler to whom she wrote Christmas cards would not notice the different handwriting.

I imagine that the segment with the explanation of the athritis was filmed and later merely cut out.

[ljrdlw]

Ah. You have a mind for remembering the details you read. I, sadly, do not, which is why I am rarely able to solve one of Agatha's mysteries before the plot is unfolded to me.

[fireserpent26]

This is the first time to my recollection seeing/reading this story. Found it very good btw,but harunrathore i think ur wrong about the arthritis. The films rarely use the storylines properly. They pick some things while using other clues from the books to create the dramaatization. Most times i noticed they didnt do it well. Thats why i think ljdlw is right,its fits way better. Book said arthritis caused the writing problem,but i think all the screenwriter noticed was that she had a problem.

[lobodaguanabara]

Mitzi rocks!

[Salamon2]

A truly marvelous series. I love Joan Hickson. The other Ms. Marples don't quite do it for me. I think Joan has the right amount of Empire mannerisms and behaviors that make her the most convincing of all. I also like how she doesn't try to leave you with a strong impression of what Ms. Marple is--that's what the other characters are for. Ms. Marple has a nice bit of depth to her and very often it's her silences that are the most important.

[jlaurson]

Nicely put what makes Joan Hickson good as Ms. Marples. I think that's it. I don't actually like her all that much... well, I'm warming up to her, that is... but the other Ms. Marples I've seen don't convince me of the character, they seem put on, pulling in different directions. This one, even if one doesn't warm up to the old lady immediately, is one character, and wholly so... gray, as Ms. Marples would have to be to stay in the background and not be perceived as a threat by murderers.

[324wilson]

I really enjoyed this episode, even though, I have read a novel! That's the beauty if Agatha Christie's writing!

Can someone please tell me that was Ms. Christie Dame of the British Empire? I hope she was was!

[DidaDragan]

Her husband was knighted a few years before she became a dame in her own right.

Agatha Christie was made a "Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire"

[DidaDragan]

Ursulla Howels (Miss Blacklock) was really very beautiful even into old age

[324wilson]

Without dout!

[ShiniRyuk]

For some reason, Miss Blacklock shouting "Liar!" has been stuck in my head since I saw this 15 years ago (never saw it when it originally debuted).

In the film, you'd never suspect this scrawny little gray-haired lady, but there was something sinister-looking in her eyes. The actress playing her did a great job.

[ryuzakikyo]

when was this movie published ? 1988 ?

[paktype]

I just watched all 18 parts. I saw this on PBS about 20 years ago and forgot how riveting this series was. You just have to marvel at this production - acting, directing, casting - all of it. Wonderful, wonderful stuff. You never see anything approaching this on American television. We get dreck like "American Idol."

[JediMasterCheryl]

I agree that PBS does great shows but that being said, as I am American (as you must be to know about PBS) and living in the UK, perhaps you don't realize how bad some of the TV is here? I don't watch TV at all here any longer. License fees, bad soaps at night...forget that. & there are good American shows as well - I always enjoyed Law & Order, CSI, and most crime-dramas. People get the TV they deserve like anything else. Were Nielsen out of the picture maybe 'AI' would die a quick death!

[ryuzakikyo]

how old are you ? i'm already 20 y/o and i just learned agatha's existence just two years ago. the first of her book i read is a murder is announced.

[btlidia]

Read all she has written! She is one of the best novelwriters, and a very sympathetic lady. Her memorys from Mesopotamia are worth of a comedy!

[arnpriorite]

I feel envious of you. I wish that I had some left that I haven't read. I've read all of them at least five times each.

My favourite is Towards Zero and I hated Murder on the Orient Express (the only one of her books that I only read once).

[jlaurson]

Isn't American Idol a British show adapted for the American market? Like most bad shows in the US are actually European shows either made worse or left in their deplorable state? The Swedish came up with "Survivor", the Dutch with all kinds of wedding shows and Big Brother (Van den Mool Productions?), and the rest from the UK? But Britain atones with shoes like these. :-)

[harunrathore]

"A murder is announced" is really my favorite Miss Marple mystery. And this is without doubt the best film in the Joan Hickson series. It is really word by word the novel and no real changes have been made compared to films like "Murder at the vicarage" where many subplots were eliminated and characters made and said things that were not mentioned in the book.

[ewok84606]

i think this might have the best character development of all the miss marples.

[DemocritusWept]

@ewok84606

couldn't agree more. The best character development of ACs works.

[anneofgreengiggles]

Thanks again!

This is my favourite!

Anybody have my second favourite "The Moving Finger"?

Haven't seen it in years...

[tucville]

Thank you so much for posting this. I missed part three of this episode and was absolutely thrilled to see it on youtube. Ms. Marple is one of my favorite series and I love Joan Hickson. She will be the only Ms. Marple for me.

[bigboaby0000]

superb, reminds me of many christmas nights with a murder mystery. what have we now?, clay mation at 8 on bbc1 and z list celebs on itv1 'skating'. smashing.

[Feanorielle]

Million thanks! I adore this story, I own the book too. It's rather sweet but unusual from Agatha to have a really likeable killer.

[xxIdinaxx]

So what was the deal with the Colonel's wife? Were her actions ever explained, or was she simply terrified at the idea of being suspected, however innocent as she was?

[lollipopfop]

She was worried her husband would be suspected. She actually likes him.

[greeklearning]

Thanks for posting it, so lovely to have it available when living in a country where they don't have such films on TV :-)

[hagenaartjuh]

This is one of my favourite novels by Agatha Christie, and I love the film to.

I'd seen it about 20 years ago, and as a child Miss Blacklock scared the crap out of me :)

Loved seeing it again!

Thank you so much for posting it.

Greetings from Holland!

[4Micstromme]

On the contrary. I always thought Ursula Howells (Miss Blacklock) was a pretty woman, given her age. I love this play as well. One of my faves of the bunch. Too bad She was the true villain though.

Also, I found it odd how Miss Marple referred to Bunner as mudled in the brain. That was not a nice thing to say about the woman.

[lollipopfop]

But that was the reason that Bunny was killed, that she was slow and unable to keep up the sharade. What would you like Ms Marple to do? Just say that "Bunny was killed because of things she just couldn't say because they were too mean"? Now that would be odd!

[Gwainafair]

LoL Charlotte dinged 99 strength whilst pwning Mitzi

[abslch]

Very nicely done, and they kept the plot very strictly to the book, which was excellent. Good acting, I especially liked Miss Blacklock, the actress played the part quite convincingly.

[hassankalaldeh]

abslch

I agree with you ...

[puckf17]

Yes very much like the book. I loved the whole cast including Hinch and Murgatroyd. Joan is as brilliant as ever. Everyone hit just the right tone. Thanks hassankaladeh, for as long as TPTB allow Agatha Christie on Youtube. You're very kind.

[abslch]

Yeah, I forgot to mention, thanks SO much for uploading this hassankalaldeh, its really great to be able to watch them online.

(Btw, puck, what is TPTB?)

[puckf17]

TPTB = The Powers That Be.

It seems AC INC or Ltd (I forget which) preciously guards BBC Hickson and Suchet. I think the other versions are cut some slack. Maybe less market demand. Still they inspire great gift ideas and wish lists I would think.

[jasmine4881]

This was very amusing, thanks a lot Hassan.

[cvreifer]

Loved it. Thanks.

[KandyLand08]

Thanks, it was great!