''The Massingham Affair'' is a 1962

crime In ordinary language, a crime is an unlawful act punishable by a State (polity), state or other authority. The term ''crime'' does not, in modern criminal law, have any simple and universally accepted definition,Farmer, Lindsay: "Crime, definit ...

detective novel 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 s ...

by the British writer

Edward Grierson Edward Grierson (9 March 1914 - 24 May 1975) was a Northumberland barrister and a writer of crime novels. His debut crime novel is the outstanding ''Reputation for a Song'', a classic inverted detective story. Grierson also wrote five novels, six ...

. Grierson based on the story on a real-life case that took place in

Edlingham Edlingham is a small village and civil parish in Northumberland in the north of England. At the 2001 census it had a population of 196, which had reduced slightly to 191 at the 2011 Census. The road to Alnwick passes close by the village and ...

. in the late nineteenth century.

Synopsis

Many years before an elderly

vicar A vicar (; Latin: ''vicarius'') is a representative, deputy or substitute; anyone acting "in the person of" or agent for a superior (compare "vicarious" in the sense of "at second hand"). Linguistically, ''vicar'' is cognate with the English pref ...

and his daughter were the victims of a violent robbery. Two local men were arrested and sentenced to life imprisonment for the crime. Now, Justin Derry, working as a

solicitor A solicitor is a legal practitioner who traditionally deals with most of the legal matters in some jurisdictions. A person must have legally-defined qualifications, which vary from one jurisdiction to another, to be described as a solicitor and ...

in the village decides to reopen the case and exonerate the accused, despite the hostility that ensues from the villagers.

TV adaptation

In 1964 it was made into a television series of the same title, broadcast on

BBC Two BBC Two is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network owned and operated by the BBC. It covers a wide range of subject matter, with a remit "to broadcast programmes of depth and substance" in contrast to the more mainstream an ...

. The cast included Lyndon Brook,

Andrew Keir Andrew Keir (né Buggy, 3 April 19265 October 1997) was a Scottish actor who appeared in a number of films made by Hammer Film Productions in the 1960s. He was also active in television, and especially in the theatre, in a professional career t ...

, Eileen Atkins and

Renny Lister Renny Lister (born 24 May 1934) is a British retired film and television actress. Personal life Lister was born on 24 May 1934 in Manchester. She married Eric Lister in 1953, the marriage later ended in divorce although she retained her first h ...

.Baskin p.69

References

Bibliography

*Baskin, Ellen. ''Serials on British Television, 1950-1994''. Scolar Press, 1996. * Reilly, John M. ''Twentieth Century Crime & Mystery Writers''. Springer, 2015. * White, Terry. ''Justice Denoted: The Legal Thriller in American, British, and Continental Courtroom Literature''. Praeger, 2003. 1962 British novels Novels by Edward Grierson British crime novels British detective novels Chatto & Windus books Novels set in Northumberland British novels adapted into television shows {{1960s-crime-novel-stub