''Enter Sir John'' is a 1928

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English ...

crime novel 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, ...

Clemence Dane Clemence Dane CBE is the pseudonym of Winifred Ashton (21 February 1888 – 28 March 1965), an English novelist and playwright. Life and career After completing her education, Dane went to Switzerland to work as a French tutor, but returne ...

and Helen Simpson. It concerns Martella Baring, a young actress, who is put on trial and convicted of murder and a fellow actor Sir John Saumarez who takes up her cause and tries to prove her innocence. It was followed by the sequel '' Re-enter Sir John'' in 1932.

Plot

Young actress Martella Baring is convicted of the murder of Edna Druce, the wife of the acting company's manager. The charming and clever Sir John Saumarez, himself an actor and the manager of an acting company, attends the trial and becomes convinced of Martella's innocence. He enlists the help of his stage manager and the stage manager's wife, and Sir John proceeds to prove Martella's innocence and save her from hanging for a crime she didn't commit

Film adaptations

In 1930, the book was adapted into two films: ''

Murder! ''Murder!'' is a 1930 British thriller film co-written and directed by Alfred Hitchcock and starring Herbert Marshall, Norah Baring and Edward Chapman. Written by Hitchcock, his wife Alma Reville and Walter C. Mycroft, it is based on the 1 ...

'' and a German-language version ''

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'', both of which were directed by

Alfred Hitchcock Sir Alfred Joseph Hitchcock (13 August 1899 – 29 April 1980) was an English filmmaker. He is widely regarded as one of the most influential figures in the history of cinema. In a career spanning six decades, he directed over 50 featur ...

. A number of changes were made from novel to screen, such as making Sir John a member of the jury while in the book he was just a spectator at the trial. Many authors have incorrectly claimed the book was also adapted as a play, but there is no evidence for this assertion.Barr p.229

References

Bibliography

* Chandler, Charlotte. ''It's only a movie: Alfred Hitchcock : a personal biography''. First Applause, 2006. * Barr, Charles. ''English Hitchcock''. Cameron & Hollis, 1999. 1928 British novels British crime novels British novels adapted into films Novels about actors Novels by Clemence Dane {{1920s-crime-novel-stub