''Trial and Error'' is a 1937

mystery Mystery, The Mystery, Mysteries or The Mysteries may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Fictional characters *Mystery, a cat character in ''Emily the Strange'' *Mystery, a seahorse that SpongeBob SquarePants adopts in the episode " My Pre ...

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 specu ...

by the British writer

Anthony Berkeley Anthony Berkeley Cox (5 July 1893 – 9 March 1971) was an English crime writer. He wrote under several pen-names, including Francis Iles, Anthony Berkeley and A. Monmouth Platts. Early life and education Anthony Berkeley Cox was born 5 July ...

. It was a loose sequel to the 1929 novel '' The Piccadilly Murder'', featuring two of the characters from the earlier work the unprepossessing but shrewd Ambrose Chitterwick and Chief Inspector Moresby 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 London boroughs, 32 boroughs. Its name derives from the location of the original ...

. Berkeley was a prominent author of 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. While the Golden Age proper is usually taken to refer to works from that period, this type of f ...

, known for his inverted detective stories.

Synopsis

The mild-mannered Lawrence Todhunter finds out he hasn't long to live, due to a heart condition. He decides to do the world a last service by killing a truly evil person, knowing he will not have to face the consequences. However his plan goes wrong when the police arrest a completely innocent man for the murder. Despite his best efforts, Todhunter cannot convinces the authorities he is the guilty party and enlists Ambrose Chitterwick to try and prove the matter.

Television adaptation

In 1958 it was adapted into a six-part television series ''

Leave It to Todhunter ''Leave It to Todhunter'' is a British television series which originally aired on the BBC in 1958.Baskin p.33 It is based on the 1937 novel ''Trial and Error'' by Anthony Berkeley. Synopsis Lawrence Todhunter, a mild-mannered little man, disco ...

''. Produced by the

BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...

it featured

Mervyn Johns David Mervyn Johns (18 February 18996 September 1992) was a Welsh stage, film and television actor who became a fixture of British films during the Second World War. Johns appeared extensively on screen and stage with over 100 credits between 1 ...

as Todhunter,

Kynaston Reeves Philip Arthur Reeves (29 May 18935 December 1971), known professionally as Kynaston Reeves, was an English character actor who appeared in numerous films and many television plays and series. Early life Reeves was born in London on 29 May 1893 ...

as Chitterwick and

Ballard Berkeley Ballard Blascheck (6 August 1904 – 16 January 1988), known professionally as Ballard Berkeley, was an English actor of stage and screen. He is best remembered for playing Major Gowen in the British television sitcom ''Fawlty Towers''. Life a ...

as Moresby.Baskin p.33

References

Bibliography

*Baskin, Ellen . ''Serials on British Television, 1950-1994''. Scolar Press, 1996. * Herbert, Rosemary. ''Whodunit?: A Who's Who in Crime & Mystery Writing''. Oxford University Press, 2003. * Miskimmin, Esme. ''100 British Crime Writers''. Springer Nature, 2020. * Reilly, John M. ''Twentieth Century Crime & Mystery Writers''. Springer, 2015. * Turnbull, Malcolm J. ''Elusion Aforethought: The Life and Writing of Anthony Berkeley Cox''. Popular Press, 1996. * White, Terry. ''Justice Denoted: The Legal Thriller in American, British, and Continental Courtroom Literature''. Praeger, 2003. 1937 British novels Novels by Anthony Berkeley British crime novels British mystery novels British detective novels Hodder & Stoughton books Novels set in London British novels adapted into television shows {{1930s-crime-novel-stub