A Doubtful Death

Charles Paris: BBC Radio 4 Full-Cast Dramatisations

by Jeremy Front (Adapter), Jeremy Front, Bill Nighy (Reading)

Bill Nighy returns as the loveably louche actor-cum-amateur detective Charles Paris

Charles Paris is in Oxford, appearing in a re-imagining of Hamlet by a high-concept drama company. No fan of immersive theatre, he’s unimpressed with the director’s vision and less than thrilled to be rehearsing alongside puppeteers and mime artists.

But he soon finds himself back on familiar territory when the actress playing Ophelia goes missing, only to turn up dead. Did she take her own life, or was there foul play? As he amasses a list of suspects who might have wished her harm, Charles takes on the mantle of detective once more to decide if this is to be or not to be a murder case…

Scripted for radio by Jeremy Front from a story by Simon Brett, A Doubtful Death stars Bill Nighy (Emma, The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel) as Charles Paris, with Suzanne Burden as Frances and Jon Glover as Maurice.

Also included is an exclusive 18-minute afterword in which Jeremy Front discusses his experience of adapting an unproduced screenplay, reveals what it’s like to work with recurring characters and actors, and explains the mechanics of recording for radio.

Credits
Written by Jeremy Front
From a story by Simon Brett
Produced and directed by Sally Avens
Production Coordinator: Cynthia Fagan
Studio Managers: Anne Bunting, Keith Graham and Jenni Burnett
Afterword produced by Ania Duggan and Roshni Radia
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4, 22 May-12 June 2020

Cast
Charles Paris……………………Bill Nighy
Frances……………………Suzanne Burden
Maurice……………………Jon Glover
Vicky……………………Jessica Turner
Jenny……………………Scarlett Courtney
Tomasz……………………Ian Conningham
Tour Guide/Dan……………………Will Kirk
Waitress/Izzy……………………Lucy Reynolds
Zoe……………………Laura Christy
Siriol……………………Sinead MacInnes
Pete/Player King……………………Neil McCaul
Tim ……………………Greg Jones
Canon Park/Director……………………Clive Hayward
Passenger……………………Adam Courting
Waitress/Sat Nav. ……………………Amy Bentley-Klein
Cassie……………………Heather Craney
Checkout/Fortinbras……………………Ikky Elyas
Continuity R4/WS Announcer……………………Jeremy Front

Genres: Audiobook, Mystery, Crime, Humor, Fiction, Drama

2 pages, Audio CD

Published July 2, 2020

Reviews

[Laura · Rating 4 out of 5]

From BBC Radio 4:
Comedy with the return of the loveably louche actor-cum-amateur detective.
To his horror, Charles has landed a role in an immersive theatre production of Hamlet and, when an actress goes missing, Charles has to decide if this is to be or not to be a murder case.
By Jeremy Front from a story by Simon Brett.

Charles ..... Bill Nighy
Frances ..... Suzanne Burden
Maurice ..... Jon Glover
Vicky ..... Jessica Turner
Jenny ..... Scarlett Courtney
Tomasz ..... Ian Conningham
Tour Guide ..... Will Kirk
Waitress ..... Lucy Reynolds

Directed by Sally Avens

[Amina (ⴰⵎⵉⵏⴰ) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Maurice is epic! And Charles responses are more than epic!

[Simon · Rating 3 out of 5]

I am a fan of the Paris books, Simon Brett, Bill Nighy and Radio 4 plays so the radio dramas should be a slam dunk. Sadly, they're just too silly. I never understood why they made Charles Paris such a buffoon to the point where he's unlikeable. Also the tweaking of entertainment industry's nose was fun at the beginning but as the series continued, it's become silly. These two elements dominate the story so much now they're squeezing out the mystery element of the story. The mystery in this story didn't start until the second half, which is a shame because the second half of the story made up for a pretty annoying first half.

[Norma · Rating 5 out of 5]

( Format : Audiobook )
"I'm wizard intolerant."
Another Charles Paris mystery, adapted for a four part drama from the book by Simon Brett and starting the excellent Bill Nighy as the frustrated actor and sometime investigator, Charles Paris, and an equally outstanding cast assuming the characters of the other delicious personalities. Good occasional music snippets, too.

This time, Charles is in Oxford, reluctantly with a part in Hamlet whilst really yearning for something in Endeavour. When an aspiring star is found drowned, Charles is reluctantly drawn into the search for what happened.
Great fun, easy listen and very enjoyable. As with all of this series, recommended.

December 2024.
Always a pleasure to listen to this BBC drama series based on Simon Brett's novels. A treat. And Bill Nighie plays Charles to pergection.

[Geraldine Sidoli · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm currently reading the Charles Paris series from the beginning, so my head is back in the 70s when the first few novels were set. It was strange to hear so many contemporary references in this story but that didn't spoil my pleasure at listening to a tale well told/adapted. Bill Nighy is an absolute joy as Charles and the other cast members were also good at painting an aural picture of what happens when a trendy director wants to re-imagine Hamlet with 4 Hamlets, one of which is a puppet & set it in a boathouse in Oxford. The death of a cast member piques Charles' detective interest and there is much humour in his pursuit of the truth

[Lynn Reynolds · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not Charles’ cleverest moment. I had this one figured out pretty early on. But it’s always a delight to hear from wastrel Charles, his lovely wife Frances, and of course, the agent with the gold-plated heart, Morris. I do always love the not-so-gentle spoofing of contemporary theatre (this production features four Hamlets, including a giant puppet).

[Anton Segers · Rating 4 out of 5]

Zalige luisterspelen. De plot draait om een moord, een whodunit, maar dat is gewoon een aanleiding om een vliegensvlug vuurwerk van geestige dialogen af te steken, met een 'wit' die Oscar Wilde waard is, en dat te laten spelen door de onvolprezen Bill Nighy, omringd door een paar ijzersterke Engelse acteurs. Lang leve de BBC..!

[Bda31175]

Just put me down for the entire Bill Nighy led series of full cast dramatisations. They are a delight. Nighy gives off the wonderful impression of an actor drawing deeply from a pretty narrow range. His wife keeps him in check to the chorus of barking audience laughter. His agent steals the show like a member of CATS licking their shoulder during a leading monologue. The investment in music to connect the scenes. These are all well worth your time.

[A.M. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Charles is desperate to be in Endeavour, but his agent has got him a part in Hamlet, but it is set in Oxford where Endeavour is filmed. Close, right?

When the actress playing Ophelia is found drowned in the river, Charles assumes he knows who is responsible.

Bill Nighy is so brilliant at these, I love it when they get re-loaded onto the BBC4 website. I cackled at the last scene - is that a cockapoo???

4 stars

[Gundrada · Rating 2 out of 5]

I've listened to most of the Charles Paris dramatisations, but sadly this isn't one of the better ones. It feels like a bit laboured. The repartee feels clunky and dated, Charles is more one-dimensional than usual, and the mystery isn't that clever or interesting. It's a shame, because the series as a whole is very good, but this one missed the mark.

[Mary · Rating 4 out of 5]

I usually avoid short stories, but this was so much fun, that I’m going to hope for more. I could see Charles Paris, the older traditional actor, rolling his eyes at the young avant-garde actors.

The characters are well done. The scenes with Charles and his agent bickering and those of Charles whining to his roommate are especially entertaining.

[Simon · Rating 4 out of 5]

Genuinely entertaining

[Sam · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love these. I love the series, I love the books, but I love Bill Nighy as Charles Paris!

[Beth · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is so fun

[Trisha · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars. Predictable but cozy mystery, Bill Nighy is great, though dramatization favours a bit of silliness.

[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.

This is the one of the original few I listened to and as it has been a while and because it was the last one on the auto-play list, I decided to listen to it again.

In this story, Charles is off to Oxford having found himself cast in a trendy, modern interpretation, Hamlet. When Lady Ophelia goes missing 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.