Police at the Funeral
Encyclopedia
Police at the Funeral is a crime novel
by Margery Allingham
, first published in October 1931
, in the United Kingdom
by Heinemann
, London
and in 1932
in the United States
by Doubleday, New York
. It is the fourth novel with the mysterious Albert Campion
, aided as usual by his butler
/valet
/bodyguard
Magersfontein Lugg
and his policeman friend Stanislaus Oates.
is called in by the fiancee of an old college friend to investigate the disappearance of her uncle, he little expects the mysterious spate of death and dangers that follows among the bizarre inhabitants of Socrates Close, Cambridge
. He and Stanislaus Oates must tread carefully, and battle some complex family dynamics, to solve the case.
in the bizarrest of places. Campion is waiting for a client, Joyce, the fiancee of his of friend Marcus, and when she arrives she clearly recognises Oates' stalker, but denies having seen him before. After Campion hears Joyce's story, of the disappearance of her uncle Andrew on the way home from church, news reaches them that Andrew's murdered body has been found in a stream.
They head to Cambridge
, where Campion meets Marcus and hears more about the family of Andrew, his imperious great-aunt Caroline and the clutch of feckless relatives who live off her, including Uncle William, who was with Andrew when he went missing, and about the body, found tied up and shot in the head. He meets William, and learns that Oates' mysterious stalker was Cousin George, who visits rarely and has some power over great-aunt Caroline.
Next morning, more bad news hits the family; aunt Julia is found dead in her bed, poisoned by a surruptitious morning cup of tea
. Campion heads to the house and meets the famous Caroline Faraday, who hires him to help them resolve matters. Oates analyses the teacup and finds traces of conium
poison, while Campion finds a stash of weight-loss pills in Julia's room.
Uncle William approaches Marcus, telling him he has been suffering from blackouts, and Campion also finds the old man's service revolver
is missing, along with some cord from the same (unused) room. Later, Campion finds William in the corridor, his hand badly cut; he almost faints, and Campion suspects mild poisoning. He and Oates inspect the scene where Andrew's body was found, but find nothing but an old hat, presumably swapped for Andrew's missing bowler
.
Back at the house, there has been another scare; a mysterious symbol like a stylised letter B has been drawn in chalk
on one of the library
windows. Campion and Oates suspect it is a sign used by tramp
s to communicate amongst themselves. Great-aunt Caroline reveals that Andrew had been writing to old girlfriends, and Campion has an idea which could solve the case. He finds Uncle William has an alibi, having been seen in a pub at the time of the murder, in the midst of an amnesia
attack, and the inquest
into Andrew's death returns a verdict of murder.
Cousin George arrives at the house, and denounces his family, claiming to know who killed Andrew and insisting he be allowed to stay in the house, threatening to bring scandal on the family. He gets drunk and is locked in Andrew's room by Campion and Marcus. In the night, Campion spots a man in the gardens, and tackles him; he is a large-footed tramp named Beveridge.
In the morning, Campion is missing, and George is found dead in his bed, with a strong smell of cyanide
in the room. When Campion and Oates arrive, Campion explains all - Andrew, watched secretly by George and his friend Beveridge, bound and then shot himself, arranging for the gun to fall from the bridge. He had previously placed several booby-traps around the house, including the poisoned pill which killed Julia, a hidden blade which cut William, and a cyanide-stuffed pipe which killed George. The tramp hid the gun in a tree and took Andrew's hat.
Campion leaves the house with everyone's gratitude, and some interesting gifts.
The device Uncle Andrew used is similar to one in a Sherlock Holmes
story The Problem of Thor Bridge
.
, the second of eight Campion stories starring Peter Davison
as Campion and Brian Glover
as Lugg. The film also featured Mary Morris
(in her last role; she died some months before it was broadcast) as Great-aunt Caroline and Timothy West
as William. Originally broadcast as two separate hour-long episodes, the original UK air date was 5 February 1989. The series was shown in the United States
by PBS
.
Crime fiction
Crime fiction is the literary genre that fictionalizes crimes, their detection, criminals and their motives. It is usually distinguished from mainstream fiction and other genres such as science fiction or historical fiction, but boundaries can be, and indeed are, blurred...
by Margery Allingham
Margery Allingham
Margery Louise Allingham was an English crime writer, best remembered for her detective stories featuring gentleman sleuth Albert Campion.- Childhood and schooling :...
, first published in October 1931
1931 in literature
The year 1931 in literature involved some significant events and new books.-Events:*Cherokee playwright Lynn Riggs' play Green Grow the Lilacs premiers. It would later be adapted by Rodgers and Hammerstein as Oklahoma!....
, in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
by Heinemann
Heinemann (book publisher)
Heinemann is a UK publishing house founded by William Heinemann in Covent Garden, London in 1890. On William Heinemann's death in 1920 a majority stake was purchased by U.S. publisher Doubleday. It was later acquired by commemorate Thomas Tilling in 1961...
, London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
and in 1932
1932 in literature
The year 1932 in literature involved some significant events and new books.-Events:*E. V. Knox replaces Sir Owen Seaman as editor of Punch magazine.*Samuel Beckett's first novel, Dream of Fair to Middling Women, is rejected by several publishers....
in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
by Doubleday, New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
. It is the fourth novel with the mysterious Albert Campion
Albert Campion
Albert Campion is a fictional character in a series of detective novels and short stories by Margery Allingham. He first appeared as a supporting character in The Crime at Black Dudley , an adventure story involving a ring of criminals, and would go on to feature in another 17 novels and over 20...
, aided as usual by his butler
Butler
A butler is a domestic worker in a large household. In great houses, the household is sometimes divided into departments with the butler in charge of the dining room, wine cellar, and pantry. Some also have charge of the entire parlour floor, and housekeepers caring for the entire house and its...
/valet
Valet
Valet and varlet are terms for male servants who serve as personal attendants to their employer.- Word origins :In the Middle Ages, the valet de chambre to a ruler was a prestigious appointment for young men...
/bodyguard
Bodyguard
A bodyguard is a type of security operative or government agent who protects a person—usually a famous, wealthy, or politically important figure—from assault, kidnapping, assassination, stalking, loss of confidential information, terrorist attack or other threats.Most important public figures such...
Magersfontein Lugg
Magersfontein Lugg
Magersfontein Lugg is a fictional character in the Albert Campion novels, written by Margery Allingham. Servant and factotum to Mr Campion, Lugg is a former burglar, with a gruff manner, who hinders Campion socially as much as he helps.- Appearances :...
and his policeman friend Stanislaus Oates.
Plot introduction
When Albert CampionAlbert Campion
Albert Campion is a fictional character in a series of detective novels and short stories by Margery Allingham. He first appeared as a supporting character in The Crime at Black Dudley , an adventure story involving a ring of criminals, and would go on to feature in another 17 novels and over 20...
is called in by the fiancee of an old college friend to investigate the disappearance of her uncle, he little expects the mysterious spate of death and dangers that follows among the bizarre inhabitants of Socrates Close, Cambridge
Cambridge
The city of Cambridge is a university town and the administrative centre of the county of Cambridgeshire, England. It lies in East Anglia about north of London. Cambridge is at the heart of the high-technology centre known as Silicon Fen – a play on Silicon Valley and the fens surrounding the...
. He and Stanislaus Oates must tread carefully, and battle some complex family dynamics, to solve the case.
Plot summary
Stanislaus Oates is being followed by a stranger, and runs into his friend CampionAlbert Campion
Albert Campion is a fictional character in a series of detective novels and short stories by Margery Allingham. He first appeared as a supporting character in The Crime at Black Dudley , an adventure story involving a ring of criminals, and would go on to feature in another 17 novels and over 20...
in the bizarrest of places. Campion is waiting for a client, Joyce, the fiancee of his of friend Marcus, and when she arrives she clearly recognises Oates' stalker, but denies having seen him before. After Campion hears Joyce's story, of the disappearance of her uncle Andrew on the way home from church, news reaches them that Andrew's murdered body has been found in a stream.
They head to Cambridge
Cambridge
The city of Cambridge is a university town and the administrative centre of the county of Cambridgeshire, England. It lies in East Anglia about north of London. Cambridge is at the heart of the high-technology centre known as Silicon Fen – a play on Silicon Valley and the fens surrounding the...
, where Campion meets Marcus and hears more about the family of Andrew, his imperious great-aunt Caroline and the clutch of feckless relatives who live off her, including Uncle William, who was with Andrew when he went missing, and about the body, found tied up and shot in the head. He meets William, and learns that Oates' mysterious stalker was Cousin George, who visits rarely and has some power over great-aunt Caroline.
Next morning, more bad news hits the family; aunt Julia is found dead in her bed, poisoned by a surruptitious morning cup of tea
Tea
Tea is an aromatic beverage prepared by adding cured leaves of the Camellia sinensis plant to hot water. The term also refers to the plant itself. After water, tea is the most widely consumed beverage in the world...
. Campion heads to the house and meets the famous Caroline Faraday, who hires him to help them resolve matters. Oates analyses the teacup and finds traces of conium
Conium
Conium is a genus of two species of highly poisonous perennial herbaceous flowering plants in the family Apiaceae, native to Europe and the Mediterranean region as Conium maculatum, and to southern Africa as Conium chaerophylloides....
poison, while Campion finds a stash of weight-loss pills in Julia's room.
Uncle William approaches Marcus, telling him he has been suffering from blackouts, and Campion also finds the old man's service revolver
Revolver
A revolver is a repeating firearm that has a cylinder containing multiple chambers and at least one barrel for firing. The first revolver ever made was built by Elisha Collier in 1818. The percussion cap revolver was invented by Samuel Colt in 1836. This weapon became known as the Colt Paterson...
is missing, along with some cord from the same (unused) room. Later, Campion finds William in the corridor, his hand badly cut; he almost faints, and Campion suspects mild poisoning. He and Oates inspect the scene where Andrew's body was found, but find nothing but an old hat, presumably swapped for Andrew's missing bowler
Bowler hat
The bowler hat, also known as a coke hat, derby , billycock or bombin, is a hard felt hat with a rounded crown originally created in 1849 for the English soldier and politician Edward Coke, the younger brother of the 2nd Earl of Leicester...
.
Back at the house, there has been another scare; a mysterious symbol like a stylised letter B has been drawn in chalk
Chalk
Chalk is a soft, white, porous sedimentary rock, a form of limestone composed of the mineral calcite. Calcite is calcium carbonate or CaCO3. It forms under reasonably deep marine conditions from the gradual accumulation of minute calcite plates shed from micro-organisms called coccolithophores....
on one of the library
Library
In a traditional sense, a library is a large collection of books, and can refer to the place in which the collection is housed. Today, the term can refer to any collection, including digital sources, resources, and services...
windows. Campion and Oates suspect it is a sign used by tramp
Tramp
A tramp is a long term homeless person who travels from place to place as a vagrant, traditionally walking or hiking all year round. In British English meanwhile a tramp simply refers to a homeless person, usually not a travelling one....
s to communicate amongst themselves. Great-aunt Caroline reveals that Andrew had been writing to old girlfriends, and Campion has an idea which could solve the case. He finds Uncle William has an alibi, having been seen in a pub at the time of the murder, in the midst of an amnesia
Amnesia
Amnesia is a condition in which one's memory is lost. The causes of amnesia have traditionally been divided into categories. Memory appears to be stored in several parts of the limbic system of the brain, and any condition that interferes with the function of this system can cause amnesia...
attack, and the inquest
Inquest
Inquests in England and Wales are held into sudden and unexplained deaths and also into the circumstances of discovery of a certain class of valuable artefacts known as "treasure trove"...
into Andrew's death returns a verdict of murder.
Cousin George arrives at the house, and denounces his family, claiming to know who killed Andrew and insisting he be allowed to stay in the house, threatening to bring scandal on the family. He gets drunk and is locked in Andrew's room by Campion and Marcus. In the night, Campion spots a man in the gardens, and tackles him; he is a large-footed tramp named Beveridge.
In the morning, Campion is missing, and George is found dead in his bed, with a strong smell of cyanide
Cyanide
A cyanide is a chemical compound that contains the cyano group, -C≡N, which consists of a carbon atom triple-bonded to a nitrogen atom. Cyanides most commonly refer to salts of the anion CN−. Most cyanides are highly toxic....
in the room. When Campion and Oates arrive, Campion explains all - Andrew, watched secretly by George and his friend Beveridge, bound and then shot himself, arranging for the gun to fall from the bridge. He had previously placed several booby-traps around the house, including the poisoned pill which killed Julia, a hidden blade which cut William, and a cyanide-stuffed pipe which killed George. The tramp hid the gun in a tree and took Andrew's hat.
Campion leaves the house with everyone's gratitude, and some interesting gifts.
The device Uncle Andrew used is similar to one in a Sherlock Holmes
Sherlock Holmes
Sherlock Holmes is a fictional detective created by Scottish author and physician Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. The fantastic London-based "consulting detective", Holmes is famous for his astute logical reasoning, his ability to take almost any disguise, and his use of forensic science skills to solve...
story The Problem of Thor Bridge
The Problem of Thor Bridge
"The Problem of Thor Bridge" is a Sherlock Holmes murder mystery by Arthur Conan Doyle, which appears in the collection The Casebook of Sherlock Holmes...
.
Characters in "Police at the Funeral"
- Albert CampionAlbert CampionAlbert Campion is a fictional character in a series of detective novels and short stories by Margery Allingham. He first appeared as a supporting character in The Crime at Black Dudley , an adventure story involving a ring of criminals, and would go on to feature in another 17 novels and over 20...
, a mysterious adventurer of noble blood- Magersfontein LuggMagersfontein LuggMagersfontein Lugg is a fictional character in the Albert Campion novels, written by Margery Allingham. Servant and factotum to Mr Campion, Lugg is a former burglar, with a gruff manner, who hinders Campion socially as much as he helps.- Appearances :...
, Campion's servant, an ex-criminal
- Magersfontein Lugg
- Marcus Featherstone, a lawyer, and friend of Campion
- "Great Aunt" Caroline Faraday, the powerful widow of a renowned academic
- Uncle William Faraday, Caroline's son, a bluff old man
- Aunt Catherine "Kitty" Berry, a hysterical lady
- Joyce Berry, Kitty's niece by marriage, engaged to Marcus
- Aunt Julia Faraday, an overweight, lazy woman
- Uncle Andrew Seeley, a cantankerous fellow, who disappears at the start
- Cousin George Faraday, the black sheep of the family, a reprobate
- Stanislaus Oates, a senior Scotland Yard man, Campion's friend
Television
The story was adapted for television by the BBCBBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
, the second of eight Campion stories starring Peter Davison
Peter Davison
Peter Davison is a British actor, best known for his roles as Tristan Farnon in the television version of James Herriot's All Creatures Great and Small and the fifth incarnation of the Doctor in Doctor Who, which he played from 1982 to 1984.-Early life:Davison was born Peter Moffett in Streatham,...
as Campion and Brian Glover
Brian Glover
Brian Glover was an English character actor, writer and wrestler. Glover was a professional wrestler, teacher, and finally a film, television and stage actor. He once said, "You play to your strengths in this game. My strength is as a bald-headed, rough-looking Yorkshireman".-Early life:Glover was...
as Lugg. The film also featured Mary Morris
Mary Morris
Mary Morris was a British actress.-Life and career:She was the daughter of Herbert Stanley Morris, the botanist, and his wife Sylvia Ena de Creft-Harford. She was educated at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art.She made her stage debut in Lysistrata at the Gate Theatre, London, in 1935...
(in her last role; she died some months before it was broadcast) as Great-aunt Caroline and Timothy West
Timothy West
Timothy Lancaster West, CBE is an English film, stage and television actor.-Career:West's craggy looks ensured a career as a character actor rather than a leading man. He began his career as an Assistant Stage Manager at the Wimbledon Theatre in 1956, and followed this with several seasons of...
as William. Originally broadcast as two separate hour-long episodes, the original UK air date was 5 February 1989. The series was shown in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
by PBS
Public Broadcasting Service
The Public Broadcasting Service is an American non-profit public broadcasting television network with 354 member TV stations in the United States which hold collective ownership. Its headquarters is in Arlington, Virginia....
.
External links
- An Allingham bibliography, with dates and publishers, from the UK. Margery Allingham Society.uk/bibliography
- A series of Allingham plot summaries, including many Campion books, from the UK. Margery Allingham Society
- A page about the book from the Margery Allingham Archive
- Fantastic Fiction's page, with details of published editions