Celebrating a fun, quirky murder mystery
Not a book review - this time a film! Sophie Hannah’s The Mystery of Mr E
Sometimes being a writer leads to all sorts of unexpected connections and fun.
I was thrilled to even get the chance to try to win some tickets for a film premiere, but totally excited to have won!
So it was a great occasion to be invited to attend the premiere of Sophie Hannah’s The Mystery of Mr E.
What a fun, quirky mystery that brings a very Sophie-Hannah-esq twisty tale to the small screen – with music (by Annette Armitage). Yes, this is one of the first ever murder-mystery musicals.
It's a classic set-up. A beautiful rich-person’s house in gorgeous countryside, a group of shady suspects. The story begins with a mysterious man arriving at the home of twins George and John Danes. He predicts they will soon be investigating a murder.
Then he disappears.
Unwanted hangers-on
The brothers (who call themselves generalists) are basically available to hire for any unusual interesting work. They are about to embark on a case as they have been asked to head to the home of bestselling romance author Harriet Landrigan.
Their job is to rid the house of the many unwanted hangers-on who are still looking to profit from the estate of the author, even after Harriet died.
Harriet’s death has not stopped a fan, a student writing a thesis, and an actor wanting the rights to her films, pestering her only son, Peter, who just wants to be left alone.
There is the added mystery surrounding why the bestselling author stopped publishing and instead only wrote books to be framed and hung on the wall.
It’s a delicious set up
It’s not long until there is the predicted murder, and possibly more than one mysterious death. And the arrival of two great singing police characters.
Everyone’s secrets start to emerge, even those of Harriet herself and her publisher and the intrigue grows in a very satisfying way.
The background to this low-budget film is that bestselling crime fiction author Sophie Hannah wrote this for her children’s school play, which has been immensely popular and has been performed on stage many times since.
And now it has now been turned into a film.
It was such a privilege to attend the movie premiere. It was a joyously glitzy affair for a dull and cold Saturday afternoon, with all the stars and cast there (plus bestselling author Sophie Hannah). Joining in to celebrate the launch of this small production film felt like being at a family event with crew members and previous members of the theatre cast in the audience all there to celebrate and to take pictures as the credits rolled.
Indie roots
The film is shot in keeping with its indie roots, with a small cast, no reliance on visual effects, but with some stunning views of the English countryside. And the songs are great!
It’s fun! It is full of the quirky and the unexpected, from the songs to the plot.
But you can get to watch it too as the film is out now on Amazon Prime.
I recommend this as perfect fun family viewing.
Maybe save if for Christmas Day, best served with a slice of traditional Christmas pudding and a mince pie.
Thanks as always for reading.
Nicki