''Ask a Policeman'' is a 1955
detective novel by
E.C.R. Lorac
Edith Caroline Rivett (6 May 1894 – 2 July 1958) was a British crime writer, who wrote under the pseudonyms E. C. R. Lorac, Carol Carnac and Mary Le Bourne during the golden age of detective fiction.
Life and career Childhood
The youngest d ...
, the
pen name
A pen name, also called a ''nom de plume'' or a literary double, is a pseudonym (or, in some cases, a variant form of a real name) adopted by an author and printed on the title page or by-line of their works in place of their real name.
A pen na ...
of the British writer Edith Caroline Rivett. It is the forty first in her long-running series featuring
Chief Inspector MacDonald of
Scotland Yard
Scotland Yard (officially New Scotland Yard) is the headquarters of the Metropolitan Police, the territorial police force responsible for policing Greater London's 32 boroughs, but not the City of London, the square mile that forms London's ...
.
[Reilly p.260] Published by the
Collins Crime Club, the title references the popular
music hall
Music hall is a type of British theatrical entertainment that was popular from the early Victorian era, beginning around 1850. It faded away after 1918 as the halls rebranded their entertainment as variety. Perceptions of a distinction in Bri ...
song ''
Ask a Policeman
''Ask a Policeman'' is a 1939 British comedy film directed by Marcel Varnel and starring Will Hay, Moore Marriott and Graham Moffatt.
The plot sees Will Hay playing a policeman at the Turnbotham Round police force. The force hasn't arrested anyb ...
''.
Synopsis
An elderly lady, a leftover from the
Edwardian era, reports the disappearance of her nephew, a
journalist. What seems at first a routine case quickly becomes a hunt for a murderer when the police investigate his last known address, a large rambling house in
St John's Wood. Efforts to discover the truth are further hampered by the death or disappearance of several witnesses.
References
Bibliography
* Cooper, John & Pike, B.A. ''Artists in Crime: An Illustrated Survey of Crime Fiction First Edition Dustwrappers, 1920-1970''. Scolar Press, 1995.
* Hubin, Allen J. ''Crime Fiction, 1749-1980: A Comprehensive Bibliography''. Garland Publishing, 1984.
* Nichols, Victoria & Thompson, Susan. ''Silk Stalkings: More Women Write of Murder''. Scarecrow Press, 1998.
* Reilly, John M. ''Twentieth Century Crime & Mystery Writers''. Springer, 2015.
1955 British novels
British mystery novels
Novels by E.C.R. Lorac
Novels set in London
British detective novels
Collins Crime Club books
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