I have an addiction to PBS. There. I said it. Now on with the blog.
If you’ve never seen “Miss Scarlet and the Duke”, here’s a quick premise: Miss Scarlet (Kate Phillips) is an Edwardian private detective constantly trying make it in a male driven society. Inspector Wellington aka “the Duke” (Stuart Martin) is a member of Scotland Yard she’s know since youth and therefore acts as antagonist, partner, competition, and love interest all in one.
The pair are investigating a case together of a finical advisor whose death mimics the famous scene in a novel by an author named Samuel Bedborough (yes, this plot again) who also happened to be one of the dead man’s clients. They find Bedborough at a book reading in a small shop run by an obsessive lady who is rather rude to customers, in my opinion. The author is also signing the books and now I’m on a research rampage to find out how early English author started doing mass signings. Seriously, is that historical inaccuracy? If you know, please comment. Thanks.
Back to the story, Bedborough and his sister Anna listen to the accounts of the murder as he is pompous and she is polite. Bedborough boasts that he can write anywhere, at any time, without “the muse” striking.
Screw you, Bedborough! Everyone has their process! Stop being ass! Some of us need youtube playlists and fifteen minutes of cat snuggles before the writing can be successful!
Sorry. Sorry. Back to the episode. The book that the murder came from is about writing. A struggling author murders his two best friends when he goes mad trying to meet a novel deadline. Understandable.
The episode deals in fame, publishing companies, a writer’s tools, a writer’s personality, and depression. I won’t give away the ending, but I will confess you’ll figure out the twist pretty quickly - but maybe not the murderer.
