Dame Edith Ngaio Marsh (; 23 April 1895 – 18 February 1982) was a New Zealand mystery writer and

theatre director A theatre director or stage director is a professional in the theatre field who oversees and orchestrates the mounting of a theatre production such as a play, opera, dance, drama, musical theatre performance, etc. by unifying various endeavors a ...

. She was appointed a

Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

in 1966. As a crime writer during the "

Golden Age of Detective Fiction The Golden Age of Detective Fiction was an era of classic murder mystery novels of similar patterns and styles, predominantly in the 1920s and 1930s. The Golden Age proper is, in practice, usually taken to refer to a type of fiction which was pre ...

", Marsh is known as one of the "Queens of Crime", along with

Agatha Christie Dame Agatha Mary Clarissa Christie, Lady Mallowan, (; 15 September 1890 – 12 January 1976) was an English writer known for her 66 detective novels and 14 short story collections, particularly those revolving around fictiona ...

Dorothy L. Sayers Dorothy Leigh Sayers (; 13 June 1893 – 17 December 1957) was an English crime writer and poet. She was also a student of classical and modern languages. She is best known for her mysteries, a series of novels and short stories set between th ...

, and

Margery Allingham Margery Louise Allingham (20 May 1904 – 30 June 1966) was an English novelist from the "Golden Age of Detective Fiction", and considered one of its four "Queens of Crime", alongside Agatha Christie, Dorothy L. Sayers and Ngaio Marsh. Alli ...

. She is known primarily for her character Inspector Roderick Alleyn, a

gentleman detective The gentleman detective, less commonly lady detective, is a type of fictional character. He (or she) has long been a staple of crime fiction, particularly in detective novels and short stories set in the United Kingdom in the Golden Age. The heroe ...

who works for the

Metropolitan Police The Metropolitan Police Service (MPS), formerly and still commonly known as the Metropolitan Police (and informally as the Met Police, the Met, Scotland Yard, or the Yard), is the territorial police force responsible for law enforcement and ...

(London). The

Ngaio Marsh Award The Ngaio Marsh Awards (formerly Ngaio Marsh Award), popularly called the Ngaios, are literary awards presented annually in New Zealand to recognise excellence in crime fiction, mystery, and thriller writing. The Awards were established by jour ...

is awarded annually for the best New Zealand mystery, crime and thriller fiction writing.

Youth

Marsh was born in the city of

Christchurch Christchurch ( ; mi, Ōtautahi) is the largest city in the South Island of New Zealand and the seat of the Canterbury Region. Christchurch lies on the South Island's east coast, just north of Banks Peninsula on Pegasus Bay. The Avon River / ...

, New Zealand, where she also died. In the Introduction to ''The Collected Short Fiction of Ngaio Marsh'', Douglas G. Greene writes: "Marsh explained to an interviewer... that in New Zealand European children often receive native names, and Ngaio... can mean either 'light on the water' or 'little tree bug' in the Maori language. Other sources say that it is the name of a native flowering tree."''The Collected Short Fiction of Ngaio Marsh'' ed. by Douglas G. Green, International Polygonnics, Ltd., 1989 Her father neglected to register her birth until 1900 and there is some uncertainty about the date. She was the only child of Rose and bank clerk Henry Marsh, described by Marsh as "have-nots". Her mother's sister Ruth married the geologist, lecturer, and curator

Robert Speight Robert Speight (2 October 1867 – 8 September 1949) was a notable New Zealand geologist, university professor and museum curator. Early life Speight was born in Stockton-on-Tees, Durham, England in 1867. When he was about 12, his family em ...

. Ngaio Marsh was educated at St Margaret's College in Christchurch, where she was one of the first pupils when the school was founded. She studied

painting Painting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a solid surface (called the "matrix" or "support"). The medium is commonly applied to the base with a brush, but other implements, such as knives, sponges, and ...

at the

Canterbury College Canterbury College may refer to: * Canterbury College (Indiana), U.S. * Canterbury College (Waterford), Queensland, Australia * Canterbury College (Windsor, Ontario), Canada * Canterbury College, Kent, England * Canterbury College, Oxford, England ...

(NZ) School of Art before joining the Allan Wilkie company as an actress in 1916 and touring New Zealand. For a short time in 1921 she was a member of the Rosemary Rees English Comedy Company, a touring company formed by actor-manager

Rosemary Rees Rosemary Rees Member of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire, MBE (23 September 1901 – 8 March 1994) was a British aviator who worked for the Air Transport Auxiliary. She was second in command to Margaret Wyndham Gore, Margot Gore at ...

. In 1928 she went to London with friends (on whom she would base the Lamprey family 'Surfeit_of_Lampreys''.html" ;"title="Surfeit_of_Lampreys.html" ;"title="'Surfeit of Lampreys">'Surfeit of Lampreys''">Surfeit_of_Lampreys.html" ;"title="'Surfeit of Lampreys">'Surfeit of Lampreys''. From then on she divided her time between living in New Zealand and the United Kingdom. In London she began writing syndicated articles, which were published in New Zealand. In addition she and one of the friends with whom she had come to London opened Touch and Go, a handicraft shop that sold items such as decorated trays, bowls and lampshades. From 1928 to 1932 she ran the shop in Knightsbridge, London.Book and Magazine Collector No.263 2005 Ngaio Marsh biography and bibliography pp.90–92 During that time she wrote her first book, ''

A Man Lay Dead ''A Man Lay Dead'' is a detective novel by Ngaio Marsh; it is the first novel to feature Roderick Alleyn, and was first published in 1934. The plot concerns a murder committed during a detective game of murder at a weekend party in a country ho ...

''. She wrote about the process of writing her first book in an essay, "Roderick Alleyn". Marsh was a member of The Group (New Zealand art), The Group, an art association based in

, New Zealand. She exhibited with them in 1927, 1928, 1935, 1936, 1938, 1940 and 1947.

Career

Internationally she is best known for her 32

detective novels Detective fiction is a subgenre of crime fiction and mystery fiction in which an investigator or a detective—whether professional, amateur or retired—investigates a crime, often murder. The detective genre began around the same time as specu ...

published between 1934 and 1982. Along with Dorothy L. Sayers, Margery Allingham and Agatha Christie, she has been classed as one of the four original "Queens of Crime" — female writers who dominated the genre of crime fiction in the

Golden Age The term Golden Age comes from Greek mythology, particularly the ''Works and Days'' of Hesiod, and is part of the description of temporal decline of the state of peoples through five Ages of Man, Ages, Gold being the first and the one during ...

of the 1920s and 1930s. All her novels feature British

CID CID may refer to: Film * ''C.I.D.'' (1955 film), an Indian Malayalam film * ''C.I.D.'' (1956 film), an Indian Hindi film * ''C. I. D.'' (1965 film), an Indian Telugu film * ''C.I.D.'' (1990 film), an Indian Hindi film Television * ''CID'' ( ...

detective Roderick Alleyn. Several novels feature Marsh's other loves, the

theatre Theatre or theater is a collaborative form of performing art that uses live performers, usually actors or actresses, to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place, often a stage. The perform ...

and painting. A number are set around theatrical productions (''Enter a Murderer'', ''Vintage Murder'', ''Overture to Death'', ''Opening Night'', ''Death at the Dolphin'', and ''Light Thickens''), and three others are about actors off stage (''Colour Scheme'', ''False Scent'' and ''Final Curtain''). Her

short story A short story is a piece of prose fiction that typically can be read in one sitting and focuses on a self-contained incident or series of linked incidents, with the intent of evoking a single effect or mood. The short story is one of the oldest ...

"'I Can Find My Way Out" is also set around a theatrical production and is the earlier "Jupiter case" referred to in ''Opening Night''; the short story won third prize in 1946 in the inaugural short story contest of ''

Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine ''Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine'' is a bi-monthly American digest size fiction magazine specializing in crime fiction, particularly detective fiction, and mystery fiction. Launched in fall 1941 by Mercury Press, ''EQMM'' is named after the fict ...

''. Alleyn marries a painter, Agatha Troy, whom he meets during an investigation (''Artists in Crime''), and who features in three later novels. Most of the novels are set in England, but four are set in New Zealand, with Alleyn either on secondment to the New Zealand police (''Colour Scheme'' and ''Died in the Wool'') or on holiday (''Vintage Murder'' and ''Photo Finish''); ''Surfeit of Lampreys'' begins in New Zealand but continues in London. Notably, ''Colour Scheme'' includes

Māori people The Māori (, ) are the indigenous Polynesian people of mainland New Zealand (). Māori originated with settlers from East Polynesia, who arrived in New Zealand in several waves of canoe voyages between roughly 1320 and 1350. Over several ce ...

among its cast of characters, unusual for novels of the British mystery genre. This novel is said to further subvert the genre by incorporating elements of spy fiction and providing a veiled critique of the British Empire. In 2018, HarperCollins Publishers released ''Money in the Morgue'' by Ngaio Marsh and Stella Duffy. The book was started by Marsh during World War II but abandoned. Working with just the book's title, first three chapters and some notes—but no idea of the plot or motive of the villain—Duffy completed the novel.

Theatre

Marsh's great passion was the theatre. In 1942 she produced a modern-dress ''

Hamlet ''The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark'', often shortened to ''Hamlet'' (), is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare sometime between 1599 and 1601. It is Shakespeare's longest play, with 29,551 words. Set in Denmark, the play depicts ...

'' for the Canterbury University College Drama Society (now University of Canterbury Dramatic Society Incorporated or Dramasoc), the first of many Shakespearean productions with the society until 1969. In 1944, ''Hamlet'' and a production of ''

Othello ''Othello'' (full title: ''The Tragedy of Othello, the Moor of Venice'') is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare, probably in 1603, set in the contemporary Ottoman–Venetian War (1570–1573) fought for the control of the Island of Cypru ...

'' toured a theatre-starved New Zealand to rapturous acclaim. In 1949, assisted by entrepreneur Dan O'Connor, her student players toured Australia with a new version of ''Othello'' and Pirandello's ''

Six Characters in Search of an Author ''Six Characters in Search of an Author'' ( it, Sei personaggi in cerca d'autore, link=no ) is an Italian play by Luigi Pirandello, written and first performed in 1921. An absurdist fiction, absurdist metatheatrical, metatheatric play about th ...

''. In the 1950s she was involved with the

New Zealand Players The New Zealand Players were one of New Zealand's first professional theatre companies, active between 1952 and 1960. The company's director was Richard Campion, who with his wife and co-founder Edith Campion were former members of the New Zeala ...

, a relatively short-lived national professional touring repertory company. In 1972 she was invited by the Christchurch City Council to direct Shakespeare's ''Henry V'', the inaugural production for the opening of the newly constructed James Hay Theatre in Christchurch; she made the unusual choice of casting two male leads, who alternated on different nights. She lived to see New Zealand develop a viable professional theatre industry having realistic Arts Council support, with many of her protégés to the forefront. The 430-seat

Ngaio Marsh Theatre The Ngaio Marsh Theatre is a theatre at the University of Canterbury Students' Association in Christchurch, New Zealand. The Ngaio Marsh theatre was named in honour of Dame Ngaio Marsh, who was a director and patron of theatre, especially Shak ...

at the

University of Canterbury The University of Canterbury ( mi, Te Whare Wānanga o Waitaha; postnominal abbreviation ''Cantuar.'' or ''Cant.'' for ''Cantuariensis'', the Latin name for Canterbury) is a public research university based in Christchurch, New Zealand. It was ...

is named in her honour.

Museum

Her home, now known as

Ngaio Marsh House Ngaio Marsh House is an historic home in Valley Road in the Christchurch suburb of Cashmere. It was the home of writer Ngaio Marsh for most of her life, and now serves as a museum to her. It is registered as a Category I heritage place by Heri ...

, in Cashmere, a suburb of Christchurch, on the northern slopes of the

Port Hills The Port Hills are a range of hills in Canterbury Region, so named because they lie between the city of Christchurch and its port at Lyttelton. They are an eroded remnant of the Lyttelton volcano, which erupted millions of years ago. The hi ...

is preserved as a museum.

Awards and honours

* 1948 – Appointed an

Officer of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

, for services in connexion with drama and literature in New Zealand, in the 1948 King's Birthday Honours * 1962 – Conferred an honorary doctorate by the University of Canterbury * 1966 – Appointed a

, for services in the arts, especially writing and theatre production, in the 1966 Queen's Birthday Honours * 1974 – Inducted into the

Detection Club The Detection Club was formed in 1930 by a group of British mystery writers, including Agatha Christie, Dorothy L. Sayers, Ronald Knox, Freeman Wills Crofts, Arthur Morrison, Hugh Walpole, John Rhode, Jessie Rickard, Baroness Emma Orczy, R. ...

* 1978 – Received the Grand Master Award for lifetime achievement as a detective novelist from the Mystery Writers of America * 1989 – Honoured with a stamp by New Zealand Post as part of a New Zealand authors series * 2015 – Honoured on 23 April 2015 with a

Google Doodle A Google Doodle is a special, temporary alteration of the logo on Google's homepages intended to commemorate holidays, events, achievements, and notable historical figures. The first Google Doodle honored the 1998 edition of the long-running an ...

Personal life

Marsh was unofficially engaged to Edward Bristed, who died in action in December 1917. She never married and had no children. She enjoyed close companionships with women, including her lifelong friend Sylvia Fox, but denied being lesbian, according to biographer

Joanne Drayton Joanne Drayton is a New Zealand art historian, biographer and nonfiction writer. Drayton graduated from the University of Canterbury, Christchurch in 1998 with a PhD on "Edith Collier: Her life and work (1885–1964)". She adapted her thesis f ...

. "I think Ngaio Marsh wanted the freedom of being who she was in a world, especially in a New Zealand that was still very conformist in its judgments of what constituted 'decent jokers, good Sheilas, and 'weirdos'", Roy Vaughan wrote after meeting her on a P&O Liner. In 1965 she published an autobiography, ''Black Beech and Honeydew''. British author and publisher Margaret Lewis wrote an authorized biography, ''Ngaio Marsh, A Life'' in 1991. New Zealand art historian Joanne Drayton's biography, ''Ngaio Marsh: Her Life in Crime'' was published in 2008. Towards the end of her life she systematically destroyed many of her papers, letters, documents and handwritten manuscripts. Marsh died in Christchurch and was buried at the Church of the Holy Innocents, Mount Peel.

Bibliography

Detective novels

All 33 novels, including one finished after Marsh's death, feature Chief Inspector Alleyn (later Chief Superintendent) of the

Criminal Investigation Department The Criminal Investigation Department (CID) is the branch of a police force to which most plainclothes detectives belong in the United Kingdom and many Commonwealth nations. A force's CID is distinct from its Special Branch (though officers of b ...

, Metropolitan Police (London). The series is chronological: published and probably written in order of the fictional history. List (with the exception of ''Money in the Morgue'') is from a list in ''The Collected Short Fiction of Ngaio Marsh'' ed. Douglas G. Greene (see below under Short Fiction). # ''

'' (1934) # '' Enter a Murderer'' (1935) # ''

The Nursing Home Murder ''The Nursing Home Murder'' ( 1935) is a work of detective fiction by New Zealand author Ngaio Marsh. Synopsis The British Home Secretary, Sir Derek O'Callaghan MP, has received several death threats from anarchists affiliated with Stalinist ...

'' (1935) # ''

Death in Ecstasy ''Death in Ecstasy'' is a detective novel by Ngaio Marsh, the fourth to feature her series detective, Chief Inspector Roderick Alleyn of Scotland Yard. It was first published in 1936. When lovely Cara Quayne drops to the floor dead after drinkin ...

'' (1936) # '' Vintage Murder'' (1937). Marsh's working title was ''The Case of the Greenstone Tiki'' (Otago Daily Times, 13 March 1937) # '' Artists in Crime'' (1938) # ''

Death in a White Tie ''Death in a White Tie'' is a detective novel by Ngaio Marsh. It is the seventh novel to feature Roderick Alleyn, and was first published in 1938. The plot concerns the murder of a British lord after a party. It was adapted for television in a ...

'' (1938) # '' Overture to Death'' (1939) # ''

Death at the Bar ''Death at the Bar'' is a crime novel by Ngaio Marsh, the ninth to feature her series detective Chief Detective-Inspector Roderick Alleyn of Scotland Yard. Published in 1940 by Collins (UK) and Little, Brown (USA), it was adapted for television ...

'' (1940) # '' Surfeit of Lampreys'' (1941); ''Death of a Peer'' in the U.S. # '' Death and the Dancing Footman'' (1941) # ''

Colour Scheme In color theory, a color scheme is the choice of colors used in various artistic and design contexts. For example, the "Achromatic" use of a white background with black text is an example of a basic and commonly default color scheme in web de ...

'' (1943) # ''

Died in the Wool ''Died in the Wool'' is a detective novel by Ngaio Marsh; it is the thirteenth novel to feature Roderick Alleyn, and was first published in 1945. The novel concerns the murder of a New Zealand parliamentarian on a remote sheep farm on the Can ...

'' (1945). Serialised: Wagga Wagga Daily Advertiser (1946) # '' Final Curtain'' (1947) # '' Swing Brother Swing'' (1949); ''A Wreath for Rivera'' in the U.S.. Serialised: Home Magazine (1949) # '' Opening Night'' (1951); ''Night at the Vulcan'' in the U.S. Serialised in the US, Woman's Day (1951). Serialised in abridged form in the UK, Woman's Journal, March to May 1951 # ''

Spinsters in Jeopardy ''Spinsters in Jeopardy'' is a detective novel by Ngaio Marsh; it is the seventeenth novel to feature Roderick Alleyn, and was first published in 1954. The novel is set in Southern France, where Alleyn, his painter wife Agatha Troy and their you ...

'' (1953); abridged later in the U.S. as ''The Bride of Death'' (1955). Serialised in abridged form in the UK, Woman's Journal, October 1953 to January 1954 # '' Scales of Justice'' (1955). Serialised: Australian Women's Weekly (1956). Serialised in abridged form in the UK, Woman's Journal, May to August 1955 # ''

Off With His Head ''Off with His Head'' is a detective novel by Ngaio Marsh; it is the nineteenth novel to feature Roderick Alleyn. It was first published in the USA (by Little, Brown of Boston) in 1956, under the title ''Death of a Fool'', and in the UK (by Colli ...

'' (1956); ''Death of a Fool'' in the U.S. # '' Singing in the Shrouds'' (1958). Serialised: Australian Women's Weekly (1959). Serialised in abridged form in the UK, Woman's Journal, June to September 1958 # ''

False Scent A false scent or false trail is an incorrect scent which may mislead an animal which hunts by smell, especially a hound. This may be the result of deliberate interference by a hunt saboteur or it may be a form of control by the master. Aniseed, a ...

'' (1959). Serialised: Australian Women's Weekly (1960). Serialised in abridged form in the UK, Woman's Journal, February to May 1960 # ''

Hand in Glove "Hand in Glove" is the debut single by English rock band the Smiths, written by singer Morrissey and guitarist Johnny Marr. It was released in May 1983 on independent record label Rough Trade. It peaked at No. 3 on the UK Indie Chart but did ...

'' (1962). Serialised in abridged form in the UK, Woman's Journal, April to July 1962 # '' Dead Water'' (1963) # ''

Death at the Dolphin ''Death at the Dolphin'' is a detective novel by Ngaio Marsh. It is the twenty-fourth novel to feature Roderick Alleyn, and was first published in 1966 as ''Killer Dolphin'' in the United States. The plot centres on a glove once owned by Hamnet ...

'' (1966); ''Killer Dolphin'' in the U.S. # '' Clutch of Constables'' (1968) # '' When in Rome'' (1970) # ''

Tied Up in Tinsel ''Tied Up in Tinsel'' is a detective novel by Ngaio Marsh; it is the twenty-seventh novel to feature Roderick Alleyn, and was first published in 1972. The novel takes place at a country house in England over the course of a few days during th ...

'' (1972) # ''

Black As He's Painted ''Black As He's Painted'' (1974) is a detective novel by Ngaio Marsh, the 28th to feature Roderick Alleyn. The plot concerns the newly independent fictional African nation of Ng'ombwana, whose president and Alleyn went to school together, and a ...

'' (1974) # ''

Last Ditch ''Last Ditch'' is a detective novel by Ngaio Marsh; it is the twenty-ninth novel to feature Roderick Alleyn, and was first published in 1977. The plot concerns drug smuggling in the Channel Islands, and features Alleyn's son, Ricky, in a centra ...

'' (1977) # ''

Grave Mistake ''Grave Mistake'' is a detective novel by Ngaio Marsh; it is the thirtieth novel to feature Roderick Alleyn, and was first published in 1978. The plot concerns the supposed suicide of a wealthy widow in a chic rest spa, and involves a rare and fa ...

'' (1978) # ''

Photo Finish A photo finish occurs in a sporting race when multiple competitors cross the finishing line at nearly the same time. As the naked eye may not be able to determine which of the competitors crossed the line first, a photo or video taken at the finis ...

'' (1980) # ''

Light Thickens ''Light Thickens'' is a detective novel by Ngaio Marsh; it is the thirty-second, and final, novel to feature Roderick Alleyn, and was first published in 1982. The plot concerns the murder of the lead actor in a production of ''Macbeth'' in Londo ...

'' (1982) Posthumously Published: # ''Money in the Morgue'' (2018) (unfinished – completed by Stella Duffy)

Short fiction

*''The Collected Short Fiction of Ngaio Marsh'', ed.

Douglas G. Greene Douglas G. Greene (born September 24,1944) is an American historian, editor, and author. He is the son of Margaret Chindahl Greene and the Reverend George L. Greene, He is married to Sandi Greene with whom he has a son, Eric and a daughter, Kather ...

, 1989 and 1991 editions (UK title ''Death on the Air and Other Stories'', 1995). Includes: **Two essays: ***"Roderick Alleyn" ***"Portrait of Troy" **Three short stories featuring Alleyn: ***''Death on the Air''. The Grand Magazine, February 1937. Co-authored with A Drummond Sharpe. (in both the 1989 and 1991 editions) ***''I Can Find My Way Out'' (1946—USA). (in both the 1989 and 1991 editions) ***''Chapter and Verse: The Little Copplestone Mystery'' (1974—USA). Republished 1936—NZ,2009). (in both the 1989 and 1991 editions). Marsh's original title was 'Chapter and Verse' **Other short stories: ***''The Hand in the Sand''.

American Weekly ''The American Weekly'' was a Sunday magazine, Sunday newspaper supplement published by the Hearst Corporation from November 1, 1896, until 1966. History During the 1890s, publications were inserted into Joseph Pulitzer's ''New York World'' and ...

, 15 March 1953. (in both the 1989 and 1991 editions) ***''The Cupid Mirror'' (1972). (in both the 1989 and 1991 editions) ***''A Fool about Money'' (1973—USA). Australian Women's Weekly, 19 February 1975. (in both the 1989 and 1991 editions) ***''Morepork'' (1979—USA). (in both the 1989 and 1991 editions) ***''The Figure Quoted''. (Christchurch) Sun, Christmas 1927. Reprinted New Zealand Short Stories (1930,l ed. O N Gillespie). (only in the 1991 edition) **A television script: ***''Evil Liver,'' with an ending to be supplied by a jury chosen from the audience; Greene suggests 5 possible solutions.

Uncollected short stories

*''Moonshine''. (Christchurch) Sun, date unknown. Reprinted '' Yours and Mine: Stories by Young New Zealanders'' (1936: ed. Warwick Lawrence) *''My Poor Boy'' (1959)

Stage plays

*''Noel''. First performed at St Margaret's College (1912) *''The Moon Princess''. First performed at St Michael's Day School (1913) *''Mrs 'obson''. First performed at St Michael's Day School (1914) *''So Much for Nothing''. First performed at the Military Sanatorium (1921) *''Little House Bound''. First performed at Leeston Town Hall (1924) *''The Wyvern and the Unicorn'' (play), ''A Unicorn for Christmas'' (opera) libretto, music by David Farquhar, first performed by the New Zealand Opera Company, 1962

Letters

*''Speech of New Zealanders''. Press, 1 July 1939

Reviews

*''Marie Tempest'' by Hector Bolitho. Press, 9 January 1937

Adapted works

*''Exit Sir Derek'' by Henry Jellett, adapted from ''

'', unpublished at the time. First performed at the Little Theatre, Canterbury (1935)

Songs

*''Columbine and Pantaloon''. First performed at Choral Hall, Christchurch (1919) *''The Hawthorn Gate''. First performed at Choral Hall, Christchurch (1920) *''The Gift''. First performed at Choral Hall, Christchurch (1920)

Television plays

*''Slipknot'' (1967) (Alleyn). Anthologised under Marsh's original title, 'A Knotty Problem', in ''Bodies from the Library: Volume 3'', ed. Tony Medawar (HarperCollins, 2020) *''Evil Liver'' (script of an episode of the series ''

Crown Court The Crown Court is the court of first instance of England and Wales responsible for hearing all Indictable offence, indictable offences, some Hybrid offence, either way offences and appeals lied to it by the Magistrates' court, magistrates' court ...

'' by Granada Television Ltd; recorded in England in 1975). Broadcast

ITV ITV or iTV may refer to: ITV *Independent Television (ITV), a British television network, consisting of: ** ITV (TV network), a free-to-air national commercial television network covering the United Kingdom, the Isle of Man, and the Channel Islan ...

, 23 August 1975. Collected in ''The Collected Short Fiction of Ngaio Marsh''

Non-fiction books

* ''New Zealand'' (1942). Coauthored with RM Burdon * ''A Play Toward'' (1946) * ''Black Beech and Honeydew'' (1965, autobiography; revised 1981) * ''Singing Land'' (1974)

Short non-fiction articles

* ''The Night Train from Grey'' (published under the pseudonym Kowhai). Sun, 7 June 1919. * ''The Novelist's Problem''. Press, 22 December 1934 * ''Theatre: A Note on the Status Quo''. Landfall, March 1947 * ''A National Theatre''. Landfall, March 1949 (Co-authored with George Swan and Arnold F Goodwin) * ''An Author's Defence of the Hackneyed Classics''. ABC Weekly, 2 April 1949 * ''The Development of the Arts in New Zealand''. Journal of the Royal Society of the Arts, 9 February 1951 * ''Theatre in a Young Country''.

Sydney Morning Herald ''The Sydney Morning Herald'' (''SMH'') is a daily compact newspaper published in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, and owned by Nine. Founded in 1831 as the ''Sydney Herald'', the ''Herald'' is the oldest continuously published newspaper i ...

, 29 April 1951 * ''New Zealand: Welfare Paradise''. Holiday, November 1960 * ''The Quick Forge''. Article within ''Shakespeare’s Quatercentenary''. Landfall, March 1964 (Coauthored with James Bertram, DF McKenzie, and

Frank Sargeson Frank Sargeson () (born Norris Frank Davey; 23 March 1903 – 1 March 1982) was a New Zealand short story writer and novelist. Born in Hamilton, Sargeson had a middle-class and puritanical upbringing, and initially worked as a lawyer. After ...

) * ''Stratford-upon-Avon''. Atlantic Monthly, February 1967

Adaptations

Two novels were adapted as television episodes in the 1960s; ''

'' in 1964 with

Geoffrey Keen Geoffrey Keen (21 August 1916 – 3 November 2005) was an English actor who appeared in supporting roles in many films. He is well known for playing British Defence Minister Sir Frederick Gray in the ''James Bond'' films. Biography Early li ...

as Alleyn, and '' Artists in Crime'' in 1968 with

Michael Allinson Michael Allinson (30 December 1920 – 30 December 2010) was a British-American stage and film actor. Biography John Michael Allinson was born on 30 December 1920 in London, the son of British painter and sculptor Adrian Allinson, founding membe ...

as Alleyn. Four of the Alleyn novels were adapted for television in New Zealand and aired there in 1977 under the title ''

'', with George Baker as Alleyn. Marsh appears in a cameo in the episode "Vintage Murder." Nine were adapted as ''

The Inspector Alleyn Mysteries ''The Inspector Alleyn Mysteries'' is a British detective television series, broadcast on BBC1, which was adapted from nine of the novels by Dame Ngaio Marsh, featuring the character Chief Inspector Roderick Alleyn. The pilot episode was shown ...

'' and aired by the

BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...

...