Verity "Birdie" Birdwood is a fictional character, and the protagonist in a series of six
murder mystery
Crime fiction, detective story, murder mystery, mystery novel, and police novel are terms used to describe narratives that centre on criminal acts and especially on the investigation, either by an amateur or a professional detective, of a crime, ...
novels by
Jennifer Rowe
Jennifer June Rowe, (born 4 April 1948), is an Australian author. Her crime fiction for adults is published under her own name, while her children's fiction is published under the pseudonyms Emily Rodda and Mary-Anne Dickinson. She is well know ...
. Birdwood is a "scrappy TV researcher" who detects criminals in novels set against Australian backgrounds.
Background
Verity Birdwood is the only child of Angus Birdwood, a wealthy lawyer. Her mother died in a car crash. Scruffy and unkempt, Birdie's most striking feature is her brown eyes, which she keeps hidden behind thick-rimmed glasses. Little is known about Birdie, but in ''Murder By The Book'' she invites Detective Dan Toby into her loft in Annandale, Sydney, for a drink.
Titles
All first editions published by
Allen & Unwin
George Allen & Unwin was a British publishing company formed in 1911 when Sir Stanley Unwin purchased a controlling interest in George Allen & Co. It went on to become one of the leading publishers of the twentieth century and to establish an ...
,
Sydney, Australia
Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and List of cities in Oceania by population, Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metro ...
.
:*''Grim Pickings'' (1987)
:*''Murder by the Book'' (1989)
:*''Death in Store'' (1991)
:*''The Makeover Murders'' (1992)
:*''Stranglehold'' (1993)
:*''Lamb to the Slaughter'' (1995)
Mini-Series
The first book of the series Grim Pickings was made into
a two part (four-hour) mini-series by the
South Australian Film Corporation
South Australian Film Corporation (SAFC) is a South Australian Government statutory corporation established in 1972 to engage in film production and promote the film industry, located in Adelaide, South Australia. The Adelaide Studios are managed ...
which aired on the
Nine Network
The Nine Network (stylised 9Network, commonly known as Channel Nine or simply Nine) is an Australian commercial free-to-air television network. It is owned by parent company Nine Entertainment and is one of five main free-to-air television netw ...
on 15 and 16 November 1989. Filmed in locations within the
Adelaide Hills and
Barossa Valley
The Barossa Valley ( Barossa German: ''Barossa Tal'') is a valley in South Australia located northeast of Adelaide city centre. The valley is formed by the North Para River. It is notable as a major wine-producing region and tourist destinati ...
regions of
South Australia
South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a state in the southern central part of Australia. It covers some of the most arid parts of the country. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories ...
, the series starred
Lorraine Bayly
Lorraine Daphne Bayly AM (born 16 January 1937) is an Australian actress of film, television and theatre, presenter, singer, dancer, pianist and theatre director and writer.
She is perhaps best known to small screen audiences for her soap ...
,
Max Cullen
Max Cullen (born 29 April 1940) is an Australian stage and screen actor. He has appeared in many Australian films and television series but is best known for his role in the film ''Spider and Rose'' and the television series ''The Flying Doctors ...
,
Catherine Wilkin and
Liddy Clark in the role of Verity "Birdie" Birdwood. Clark's "Birdie" was notably different in both appearance (Clark had short, blonde hair) and manner (Clark portrayed a more extroverted, outwardly confident Birdie).
Grim Pickings at answers.com
/ref>
References
Fictional female detectives
Fictional amateur detectives
Fictional Australian detectives
Fictional Australian people
Books by Jennifer Rowe
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