A Reconstructed Corpse

Charles Paris: BBC Radio 4 Full-Cast Dramatisations

by Jeremy Front (Adaptor), Simon Brett (Original Text), Bill Nighy (Narrator)

Bill Nighy returns as Charles Paris: unsuccessful actor, bad husband and dipsomaniac. Desperately in need of work, having been kicked out of the marital home, Charles jumps at playing a missing property developer in a crime reconstruction programme. But the missing person case soon turns to murder when severed body parts begin to appear. Television ratings soar as the public tune in to discover every gory detail of the case. The raging egos and jealous manoeuvrings of the producers, presenters and the police provide a long list of suspects for Charles as he pieces together a macabre jigsaw puzzle of murder.

Bill Nighy, Suzanne Burden and Jon Glover are among the star cast in this enjoyable mystery, dramatised by Jeremy Front and first broadcast on BBC Radio 4 - 16 March 2012.

2 CDs. 2 hrs.

Genres: Crime, Audiobook, Mystery, British Literature, Humor, Cozy Mystery

Audio CD

First published March 29, 2012

Reviews

[JZ · Rating 4 out of 5]

Enter Bill Nighy, as Charles Paris, and there you are with the luscious, louche lush.

hehe That was fun. So was the play. Now, I can look for the book in a couple of years, because I never remember whodunit until about the third read.

[Pam Tickner · Rating 3 out of 5]

A BBC audio presentation with a star studded cast which is more like listening to a TV show than a narration of a book, but very entertaining while walking.

[Amina (ⴰⵎⵉⵏⴰ) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ooooh that was a good one, loved the Charles/Frances detectives team 😂

[Diane · Rating 4 out of 5]

Love Bill Nighy. Unfortunately our Library only owns 2 of his Charles Paris Mysteries on CD. This one was even funnier than Cast in Order... The lady portraying his "semi-detached" wife has expert timing. The scene where he is trying to tell her what happened last night as she is reading off DVD XXX titles is hilarious! My favorite line comes in a scene where his agent is storming out of the flat and as the door slams Charles says, "Don't I get a kiss?" Laughing out loud driving down Columbia Parkway. I'm listening to disc 2 for a third time before I return it.

[Clare · Rating 4 out of 5]

Review to follow.

[Adrian · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have taken to listening to an audio book or radio play adaptation whilst working from home and today it's back to the BBC Radio 4 dramatisations of the Simon Brett Charles Paris novels. They are wonderfully fun and Bill Nighy plays the aging actor, with a penchant for women and drink, so very well.

In this story, Charles finds himself cast as the look-alike of a missing husband on 'crime-watchers'. When body parts start turning up it appears that the husband is, in fact, dead, assumed murdered. Once again it's left to Charles to piece together the clues which the police seem happy to ignore.

I have been listening to these radio plays out of order compared to the original books. However, it doesn't impact the story or the enjoyment at all and there are no spoilers to previous books/adaptations. 3.5 stars.

[A.M. · Rating 3 out of 5]

Charles takes a job as the look-alike for a missing person case, but the TV episode becomes a murder inquiry when body parts show up.

Meanwhile he is trying to get his wife, Frances, to spend time with him in Brighton, and the two of them end up investigating the murder together.

These productions are always such fun. Bill Nighy IS Charles.

3 stars

[Norma · Rating 5 out of 5]

( Format : Audiobook )
"Shaving Ryan's Privates "
Another of the absolutely deliciously funny Charles Paris murder mysteries, dramatized for the BBC by Jeremy Front, based on the novel by Simon Brett. Charles is an (often out of work) actor whose relationship with his wife is erratic: it is their 35th divorce avoidance anniversary. Charles' agent has secured him a one day TV part, impersonating a murder victim in a popular true crime programme. And where Charles gkes, chaos usually follows, even if it is not his fault. This time it follows to Brighton.

This series of adaptations for the BBC is great fun with Bill Nighy perfecting the role of Paris and a full cAst backing his performance.Additionally, there are snippets of early 70s music by the Who, Carol King and Pink Floyd , amongst others, as well as the different cell phone ring tones for each of Charles' contacts, the death March for his agent, Maurice, and Je t'aime for his wife, for example. A convoluted murder plot completes the pleasure.

It's skillfully silly, deliciously drops and artfully acted. Love it. Get it. Listen and enjoy.

[Jason Platt · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have always enjoyed the Charles Paris Mysteries. And, just like everything in life, there are some that are better than others (But only by a slim margin, I absolutely love them all). I can't tell you how many times I've gone through the series through the years (more than five, less than a hundred--if you want a ball park figure), but there are certain ones that I still find myself laughing at. Some of Jeremy Front's lines with the charisma of the actors just lands every time for me.

[Anton Segers · Rating 3 out of 5]

Geestige dialogen zoals altijd, weer sterk gebracht in deze humoristische BBC-dramatisering (Bill Nighy is God), maar de whodunnit is geforceerd en vergezocht.

[Jill]

SPOILER: Charles + Frances in Brighton where he plays a missing real estate developer whose body parts keep appearing. Audiobook.