Dover and the Claret Tappers

Inspector Dover #10

by Joyce Porter

Detective Chief Inspector Wilfred Dover is the most idle and avaricious hero in all of crime fiction. Why should he even be bothered to solve the case? Dover and the Claret Tappers is a surprising departure for the series featuring Scotland Yard's least competent detective, and the first to depart is none other than Dover himself. When the doubtful detective suddenly vanishes from Scotland Yard, along comes an ultimatum from a gang of kidnappers, the Claret Tappers. They demand not only a stout ransom, but also the release of two prisoners – a multiple bigamist and a nymphomaniacal shoplifter. How Dover gets out of this one is only the beginning. For just as the case is getting cold, the Claret Tappers strike again. And once more Dover is aroused from his stupor in a most unexpected way. “Something quite out of the ordinary.” Daily Telegraph “Joyce Porter is a joy … Dover is unquestionably the most entertaining detective in fiction.” Guardian “Plotted with the technique of a virtuoso.” New York Times “Wonderfully funny.” Spectator “Dover is wildly, joyously unbelievable; and may he remain so for our comic delight.” Sun “Porter has a keen eye, a wicked sense of comedy, and a delightfully low mind.” Harper’s

Genres: Mystery, Short Stories, Crime

208 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1977

About the author

Joyce Porter was born in Marple, Cheshire, and educated at King's College, London. In 1949 she joined the Women's Royal Air Force, and, on the strength of an intensive course in Russian, qualified for confidential work in intelligence. When she left the service in 1963 she had completed three detective novels.

Porter is best known for her series of novels featuring Detective Inspector Wilfred Dover. Dover One appeared in 1964, followed by nine more in a highly successful series. Porter also created the reluctant spy Eddie Brown, and the "Hon-Con", the aristocratic gentlewoman-detective Constance Ethel Morrison Burke.

Reviews

[Laura · Rating 3 out of 5]

From BBC Radio 4 Extra:
When one of their own gets kidnapped, there's a sense of jubilation at Scotland Yard.

Not what you might expect, but then the victim is Inspector Dover, and he's not quite the detective England expects. Is this the start of something more sinister?

Set in 1976, Joyce Porter's comedy thriller is dramatised by Paul Mendelson.

Stars Kenneth Cranham as Chief Inspector Dover, Stuart McQuarrie as Sergeant McGregor, Crawford Logan as Commander Brockhurst, Nick Underwood as Inspector Horton, Liza Sadovy as Mrs Withycombe, Carla Simpson as Mildred Denny, Carolyn Pickles as Mrs Carruthers, Andy Harrison as John Perking, Paul Copley as Daniel Wibbley, Nicola Wainwright as Avril, Terry Wale as Gallagher, Laura Smales as Mary Jones, Lucy Paterson as Lesley Whittaker and Joanna Tope as Noreen.

Dramatised by Paul Mendelson.

Director: David Ian Neville

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in 2005.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b0192y98

[Whistler's Mom · Rating 4 out of 5]

Remember "The Ransom of Red Chief"? Sometimes crime really DOESN'T pay.

This book opens with an incredible (for Dover fans) premise - someone has kidnapped Inspector Dover and is demanding a large ransom. The inexperienced kidnappers chose Dover because he's fat and lazy and was easily lured into a car with strangers. Old Wilf is ALWAYS happy to take a load off his feet. They knew he wasn't the most esteemed employee at Scotland Yard, but failed to guess that they would be more likely to be paid money to KEEP than to return him.

The barely concealed elation of his superiors and colleagues (not to mention Mrs. Dover and the long-suffering Sergeant MacGregor) turns to gloom when the worthless old loafer is dumped out (appropriately) in a large plastic garbage bag. Since no one really cares if the kidnappers are ever brought to justice, they assign Dover to investigate the case, which he proceeds to do with his usual bad-tempered lethargy. And that would have probably been the end of it if the gang hadn't made the mistake of kidnapping another victim - and THIS time, it's someone that Scotland Yard wants back!

This is not the best of the Dover books, but there are some wonderful bits and the last three chapters are fine indeed. Porter was a shrewd observer of the absurdities of English life in the 1960's and her characters are bizarre, but always believable. A must-read for Dover fans. The rest of you don't count.

[Ashley Lambert-Maberly · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's quite a change of pace. I think I prefer the traditional mystery, with a small cast in a small town (or large house) one of whom must have done it. This book is more of a suspense thriller / police procedural, Dover-style, where they're on the hunt for characters that the reader hasn't met. It's a high 3-stars (how I wish Goodreads was on a 100 point scale like Criticker!) but would be unfair to the 4-star books I've read to rate this quite as highly. In a whodunnit you can guess along, but here, you really can't.

That said, it's in keeping with the other Dovers otherwise, it's enjoyable enough, I was happy to turn to it before bedtime, and I did very much enjoy the twist of the opening situation. But having gone to so much trouble to establish "Dover didn't pay attention" this could have been more of a "whodunnit" after all, and I do wish she'd done that instead. But hey, it's her book!

Note: I have written a novel (not yet published), so now I will suffer pangs of guilt every time I offer less than five stars. In my subjective opinion, the stars suggest:

(5* = one of my all-time favourites, 4* = really enjoyed it, 3* = readable but not thrilling, 2* = actually disappointing, and 1* = hated it. As a statistician I know most books are 3s, but I am biased in my selection and end up mostly with 4s, thank goodness.)

[Tuomas Saloranta · Rating 4 out of 5]

Tällä kertaa hieman erilainen Dover-mysteeri, rikoksen uhrina on nimittäin komisario itse. Heti alkajaisiksi Dover on kidnapattu lunnaita vastaan, mutta koska kukaan ei halua maksaa hänen palauttamisestaan, hänet päästetään jo melko alkuvaiheessa vapaaksi. Sen jälkeen meno palaa tutuille raiteille, Dover ja MacGregor yrittävät jahdata kidnappaajia vaihtelevan huonolla menestyksellä ja kaikkien osallisten hermot kiristyvät uhkaavasti. Sekoilu saa sentään lopulta yllättäviä käänteitä ja juoni jopa kiristyy hetkellisesti aika tavalla. Ratkaisu on tähän nähden hienoinen antikliimaksi, mutta sekin oikeastaan vain sopii yleiseen meininkiin.

[Steve Gutin · Rating 4 out of 5]

My first Dover. Well written and funny.

[Sara Eames · Rating 3 out of 5]

One of the weaker entries in the Inspector Dover series. Dover continues to be as unpleasant as ever, but there are a few laughs along the way.

[Captain Basil · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a fun Dover adventure and it was a little different. That's not a bad thing. If you enjoy this series, you will be pleased.