A Murder of Quality
Encyclopedia
A Murder of Quality is the second novel
by John le Carré
. It follows George Smiley
, the most famous of le Carré's recurring characters, in his only book set outside the espionage community.
, to investigate a "death menace" letter sent by a reader who claims her husband, a boarding school instructor, is trying to kill her. The brother of Fielding, a classics professor who was one of Smiley's close wartime associates in the Circus
, is also an instructor at the school where the woman's husband teaches, the famous Carne College. Unfortunately, the woman is killed before Smiley can even talk to her, and Smiley goes to the school to investigate, in an effort to ease Miss Brimley's concern that her failure to call the police was a cause of the woman's death.
Carne was the youthful home of Smiley's estranged wife Ann, and Smiley is both the subject of snide gossip and witness to a rural "town and gown
" gap (with mistrust on both sides) that makes finding the killer seem more and more unlikely. At every step, he realizes there were many possible reasons for the murder, and the number of suspects only seems to get bigger. The town police focus on a madwoman as the murderer, but both Smiley and the investigating officer believe her to be innocent ... and then Smiley discovers the hiding place of the murderer's blood-stained clothes, while the police find a second murder victim, a boy in Fielding's house. The clues, and a confession about the secret, delusional vindictiveness of the murdered woman from her husband (which confirms the odd reaction to her that Smiley had noted from the local minister), lead Smiley to the real murderer: Fielding's brother, who was being blackmailed by the woman due to a WWII homosexuality conviction, and who had only kept his job at substantially-reduced wages. The boy had inadvertently seen evidence that disproved Fielding's brother's alibi for the time of the woman's murder, although the boy was never aware of it before his death.
Le Carré has denied that Carne was based on any particular school: "There are probably a dozen great schools of whom it will be confidently asserted that Carne is their deliberate image. But he who looks among their common rooms for the D'Arcys, Fieldings and Hechts will search in vain." Nonetheless, the geography and descriptions of Carne bear a great deal of resemblance to le Carré's own alma mater, Sherborne School
.
by Thames Television
in 1991. It starred Denholm Elliott
as George Smiley and featured a screenplay adapted from the novel by John le Carré himself. It also starred Glenda Jackson
, Joss Ackland
, Diane Fletcher
, David Threlfall
and Christian Bale
.
"A Murder of Quality" was the second story to be broadcast in BBC Radio 4's major series to feature all the Smiley novels ("The Complete Smiley"), with Simon Russell Beale
in the main role.
Novel
A novel is a book of long narrative in literary prose. The genre has historical roots both in the fields of the medieval and early modern romance and in the tradition of the novella. The latter supplied the present generic term in the late 18th century....
by John le Carré
John le Carré
David John Moore Cornwell , who writes under the name John le Carré, is an author of espionage novels. During the 1950s and the 1960s, Cornwell worked for MI5 and MI6, and began writing novels under the pseudonym "John le Carré"...
. It follows George Smiley
George Smiley
George Smiley is a fictional character created by John le Carré. Smiley is an intelligence officer working for MI6 , the British overseas intelligence agency...
, the most famous of le Carré's recurring characters, in his only book set outside the espionage community.
Plot summary
George Smiley is called by a wartime colleague, Miss Brimley, who now publishes a small Christian magazineMagazine
Magazines, periodicals, glossies or serials are publications, generally published on a regular schedule, containing a variety of articles. They are generally financed by advertising, by a purchase price, by pre-paid magazine subscriptions, or all three...
, to investigate a "death menace" letter sent by a reader who claims her husband, a boarding school instructor, is trying to kill her. The brother of Fielding, a classics professor who was one of Smiley's close wartime associates in the Circus
Cambridge Circus, London
Cambridge Circus is a traffic intersection at the intersection of Shaftesbury Avenue and Charing Cross Road in central London...
, is also an instructor at the school where the woman's husband teaches, the famous Carne College. Unfortunately, the woman is killed before Smiley can even talk to her, and Smiley goes to the school to investigate, in an effort to ease Miss Brimley's concern that her failure to call the police was a cause of the woman's death.
Carne was the youthful home of Smiley's estranged wife Ann, and Smiley is both the subject of snide gossip and witness to a rural "town and gown
Town and gown
Town and gown are two distinct communities of a university town; "town" being the non-academic population and "gown" metonymically being the university community, especially in ancient seats of learning such as Oxford, Cambridge, Durham and St Andrews, although the term is also used to describe...
" gap (with mistrust on both sides) that makes finding the killer seem more and more unlikely. At every step, he realizes there were many possible reasons for the murder, and the number of suspects only seems to get bigger. The town police focus on a madwoman as the murderer, but both Smiley and the investigating officer believe her to be innocent ... and then Smiley discovers the hiding place of the murderer's blood-stained clothes, while the police find a second murder victim, a boy in Fielding's house. The clues, and a confession about the secret, delusional vindictiveness of the murdered woman from her husband (which confirms the odd reaction to her that Smiley had noted from the local minister), lead Smiley to the real murderer: Fielding's brother, who was being blackmailed by the woman due to a WWII homosexuality conviction, and who had only kept his job at substantially-reduced wages. The boy had inadvertently seen evidence that disproved Fielding's brother's alibi for the time of the woman's murder, although the boy was never aware of it before his death.
Le Carré has denied that Carne was based on any particular school: "There are probably a dozen great schools of whom it will be confidently asserted that Carne is their deliberate image. But he who looks among their common rooms for the D'Arcys, Fieldings and Hechts will search in vain." Nonetheless, the geography and descriptions of Carne bear a great deal of resemblance to le Carré's own alma mater, Sherborne School
Sherborne School
Sherborne School is a British independent school for boys, located in the town of Sherborne in north-west Dorset, England. It is one of the original member schools of the Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference....
.
Television and Radio adaptations
The novel was adapted for televisionTelevision
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
by Thames Television
Thames Television
Thames Television was a licensee of the British ITV television network, covering London and parts of the surrounding counties on weekdays from 30 July 1968 until 31 December 1992....
in 1991. It starred Denholm Elliott
Denholm Elliott
Denholm Mitchell Elliott, CBE was an English film, television and theatre actor with over 120 film and television credits...
as George Smiley and featured a screenplay adapted from the novel by John le Carré himself. It also starred Glenda Jackson
Glenda Jackson
Glenda May Jackson, CBE is a British Labour Party politician and former actress. She has been a Member of Parliament since 1992, and currently represents Hampstead and Kilburn. She previously served as MP for Hampstead and Highgate...
, Joss Ackland
Joss Ackland
Sidney Edmond Jocelyn Ackland CBE , known as Joss Ackland, is an English actor who has appeared in more than 130 films and numerous television roles.-Early life:...
, Diane Fletcher
Diane Fletcher
Diane Fletcher is an English actress.Fletcher was born in Derbyshire. She played Nancy in Fairly Secret Army, and has appeared in other popular British television shows such as Coronation Street as Angela Hawthorne,...
, David Threlfall
David Threlfall
David Threlfall is an English stage, film and television actor and director best known for playing Frank Gallagher in Channel 4's Manchester-based drama series Shameless. He has also directed several episodes of the show.-Early life:...
and Christian Bale
Christian Bale
Christian Charles Philip Bale is an English actor. Best known for his roles in American films, Bale has starred in both big budget Hollywood films and the smaller projects from independent producers and art houses....
.
"A Murder of Quality" was the second story to be broadcast in BBC Radio 4's major series to feature all the Smiley novels ("The Complete Smiley"), with Simon Russell Beale
Simon Russell Beale
Simon Russell Beale, CBE is an English actor. He has been described by The Independent as "the greatest stage actor of his generation."-Early years:...
in the main role.