The last joker

The last Joker (original title The Seven Dials Mystery ) is the ninth detective novel by Agatha Christie . It first appeared in the United Kingdom on January 24, 1929 by William Collins & Sons and in the United States by Dodd, Mead and Company later that year. The German first edition was published in 1934 under the title Sieben Uhren in the Express Books-Verlag (Vienna, Leipzig). In 1975 the Scherzverlag published a new edition with the new title The Last Joker in the translation by Renate von Walter, which is still used today.

In this novel, Christie brings back her characters from the earlier novel The Count's Memoirs : Lady Eileen (Bundle) Brent, Lord Caterham, Bill Eversleigh, George Lomax, Tredwell and Superintendent Battle.

action

The story begins at Chimneys (in German: Kamine), the country residence of the Marquis of Caterham (actually: Marquess). Chimneys is leased to Sir Oswald Coote for two years.

There is also a group of young people in the house for one company. One of them, Gerald 'Gerry' Wade, has a reputation for sleeping until late in the morning. The other six plan a joke by buying eight alarm clocks and putting them in George's room.

The next morning they should ring at different times - from half past six. They do that too, only Wade doesn't come down. He lies dead in his bed, died of a chloral overdose .

The group is shocked. Jimmy Thesiger and Ronny Devereux go to Loraine Wade, Gerry's half-sister, to bring her the news. When they returned to Chimneys, they found that all the clocks were now on the mantelpiece - but there were only seven and no longer eight.

A few days later, Lord Caterham and his family returned to his Chimneys country estate. The inquest has taken place - death by accident.

Bundle is friends with Bill Eversleigh and writes to him about Gerry, who died in her room. In her desk she finds a letter to Loraine that has already been started saying that Gerry has got into a “terrible business” and that “I am so tired that I can no longer open my eyes. Forget what I said about the Seven Dials ".

Completely at a loss, she wants to go to London to see Bill. On the way, a man stumbles in front of her car, she can barely avoid it, but he collapses anyway. His last words are: "Seven Dials ... Say ... Jimmy Thesiger". However, he did not die as a result of the accident; he was shot. The dead man is Ronny Devereux.

Bundle's father is visited by Foreign Secretary Lomax , who tells of a strange warning in a letter from Seven Dials , a part of London with a bad reputation. The next day, Bundle finally comes to London and gets Jimmy's address from Bill, where she meets Loraine Wade. She said that in her brother's papers she found a list of names and dates as well as an address and an indication of a secret company similar to the Mafia . The three conclude that Gerry's death was murder and that the seven clocks mean a warning. Jimmy knows that Gerry had ties to the State Department and intelligence. Bundle tells about the letter to Lomax. There's a big party scheduled for next week at his Wyvern Abbey house, and Jimmy and Bundle are handling the invitations.

Bundle decides to go to Scotland Yard's Superintendent Battle, but he doesn't help. But he tells her that Bill Eversleigh knows something about Seven Dials. From him she learns that Seven Dials is a run-down nightclub in the London district of the same name. She insists on a joint visit. In the club she recognizes the bouncer Alfred, a former servant from Chimneys. The next day she goes back to the club and questions Alfred. He got the job from Mr. Mosgorovsky, who is also a guest of the Cootes. With a little pressure, she convinces Alfred to show her the club. She discovers a secret room with seven chairs. She locked herself in a closet and a few hours later witnessed a strange gathering of five people.

The people wear hoods with slits for eyes and dials over their heads. Each shows a different time between one and six o'clock. Bundle can distinguish different nationalities by the sound of their accent. One member of the sinister group is a woman with a birthmark on her shoulder. They talk about the missing number two, and a member complains that number seven is always missing. They also talk about Lomax's party at Wyvern Abbey, where allegedly a German named Eberhard will be present with a valuable invention. They also talk about Ronny's death and that Bauer, a servant on Chimeys, is in their service.

The next day, Bundle tells Jimmy about her experience at the club. They suspect that farmer is Gerry's killer. Jimmy knows that Eberhard has discovered a chemical formula that can be used to harden wire , revolutionizing the aviation industry. The German government is not interested, and so the formula is to be sold to the British, represented by Sir Stanley Digby, the Minister of Aviation, at the Wyvern Abbey meeting.

Bundle and Jimmy arrive at Wyvern Abbey and are introduced to the other guests: the Cootes, Sir Stanley Digby, Terence O'Rourke and the beautiful Hungarian Countess Radzky as well as Superintendent Battle. Bill Eversleigh also shows up. Jimmy had told him about Bundle's experiences. Because Sir Stanley is only there for one night, everyone suspects that the formula may be stolen that night. Jimmy and Bill arrange two watches, with a three-hour changeover.

At two o'clock in the night, after a loud fight, two shots were fired. Jimmy's right arm is wounded in the library. At this point, Bundle is in her room, Battle is on the terrace, where a package has just fallen at Loraine's feet. The Countess lies unconscious behind a Spanish wall , Sir Oswald has come from a night's walk and has found a pistol.

Jimmy says he was ambushed and shot by a man who escaped. The formula is stolen, but it can be found in Loraine's package. Everyone wants to go back to bed - Bill wants to accompany the countess to her room when Bundle sees a birthmark shining through the negligee on her shoulder - she is a member of the Seven Dials!

The next morning, Battle examines the lawn where the gun was found. There is only a footprint there, Sir Oswalds, and in the library fireplace Battle finds a charred left glove with tooth marks. The news comes from Chimneys that Bauer is missing.

Before the company breaks up, Jimmy asks Loraine if she can keep an eye on Bundle so she doesn't endanger her investigation. He receives an invitation from Lady Coote to her new house in Letherbury so that he can continue to watch Sir Oswald. There Loraine and Bundle arrive, whose car broke down nearby. But you don't get any further.

A few days later, Bill shows up at Jimmy's London apartment. Ronny Devereux's lawyers have sent him a letter from Ronny that he wrote in case something should happen to him - the contents are incredible. Jimmy calls Loraine and Bundle and they all want to meet at the Seven Dials Club. The girls arrive first. Jimmy arrives, but leaves Bill in the car. Bundle should show him the secret room. When they're in the room, Loraine shouts that something is wrong with Bill. They find him unconscious in the car and take him to the club. Jimmy runs to get a doctor and Bundle goes to the club to find some brandy for Bill, but someone knocks her down.

She comes to in Bill's arms and is pleasantly surprised to hear from his mouth that he loves her. You are interrupted by Mr. Mosgorovsky, who takes you to an emergency meeting of the Seven Dials. Number seven is there, introducing itself - it's Superintendent Battle. He explains that Seven Dials is not an association of criminals, but an association of detectives and intelligence officers. Among the members is Mr. Mosgorovsky; It was Gerry Wade and Ronny Devereux; the Hungarian countess has now taken Gerry's place, but her real identity is that of the American actress Babe St. Maur. Bundle is shocked to learn that Bill Eversleigh is also a member of the organization. She is even more shocked to learn that the organization has achieved its ultimate goal, namely the arrest of an international criminal who specialized in stealing secret formulas - Jimmy Thesiger, who was arrested that afternoon with his accomplice Loraine Wade .

Jimmy killed Gerry Wade when he found him. He took the eighth o'clock to see if anyone reacted - Bauer was at Chimneys but he wasn't up to Jimmy. Ronny Devereux was killed when he got too close to the truth. His last words weren't a warning to Jimmy about the Seven Dials, but the reverse. There wasn't a second man at Wyvern Abbey to steal the formula. Jimmy climbed over the ivy into Sir Stanley Digby's room, threw the formula down at Loraine, and climbed back down. He staged the fight in the library, shot himself in the right arm and threw the pistol on the lawn. Because he could no longer move his right arm, he took off his left glove with his teeth and threw it into the fire.

Bill's story about Ronny leaving him papers was an invention to get Jimmy out of hiding. Jimmy then gave Bill a poisoned cocktail in his apartment , but Bill didn't drink it - he played the drunkard. Jimmy had never run out of the club to see a doctor, but hid in the club and knocked Bundle down.

Bundle is offered the free space in the Seven Dials and Bill asks for her hand. Lord Caterham is delighted - Bill is a golfer and he finally has someone to play with.

people

• Jimmy Thesiger, rich young loaf
• Tredwell, butler on chimneys
• Sir Oswald Coote, self-made millionaire
• Lady Maria Coote, his wife
• MacDonald, Senior Gardener on Chimneys
• Rupert Bateman, Sir Oswald's secretary, went to school with Jimmy Thesiger
• Helen, Nancy and Vera Daventry - guests of the party at Chimneys
• Bill Eversleigh of the State Department
• Ronny Devereux
• Gerald Wade
• Loraine Wade, his half-sister
• Marquis of Caterham
• Lady Eileen "Bundle" Brent, his daughter
• Stevens, Jimmy's servant
• Superintendent Battle
• Alfred, former domestic worker on Chimneys
• Bauer, his successor
• George Lomax, Secretary of State
• Sir Stanley Digby, Secretary of Aviation
• Terence O'Rourke
• Countess Radzky, later turns out to be actress Babe St. Maur
• Mr. Eberhard, German explorer
• Mr. Mosgorovsky, owner of Seven Dials nightclub
• Count Andras and Hayward Phelps, members of the Seven Dials

Reviews

The review in the Times Literary Supplement , April 4, 1929, was for once significantly less enthusiastic than usual about a Christie book: “It is a great pity that Mrs. Christie in this book describes the methodological procedure for examining a single, well-defined crime renounced in favor of a romance with universal conspiracies and international criminals. These horror romances are not to be despised in themselves, but they differ from the story with a strict ending in their literary form so vastly that one cannot assume that someone has mastered both. Mrs. Christie lacks the casual and gullible romance that otherwise successfully fills the big screen of extensive crime. In this genre, bravado is better than precision. The mystery of the seven dials and that of the secret society that meets in a dark district requires just as brilliant treatment, but Christie is presented as a meticulous study, as she has done in her previous books. ”The review concludes, "There's no particular reason why the man in the mask is the one who gets exposed in the end."

The April 7, 1929 review begins in The New York Times Book Review : “After reading the first chapter of this book, an unexpectedly entertaining thread relaxes. There are some very funny young people in him and the fact that they appear in a detective novel doesn't diminish their spirit to any great extent. "The unknown reviewer explains the plot until Gerald Wade is found dead and writes," That is her History excellent; and it will continue until the moment comes when the mystery is to be solved. Then you can see that the author, as much as she tried to keep the reader from guessing the solution, almost exceeded the limits that apply to a crime author. She has withheld information the reader should know, easily laid false leads, and avoided any clue to the real killer. Worst of all, however, the solution itself is completely absurd. This book is way below the standards set by Agatha Christie's previous books. "

The Scotsman, January 28, 1929, says, "Although less good in style than some of her earlier novels, The Seven Dials Mystery has a reputation for author's genius." Criticism goes on to say that there is a peculiarity of the story, that at the end the reader wants to turn back to see if he was treated fairly by the author. By and large, he was. "

Robert Barnard: “The same people in the same place - in Chimneys; but without the same enthusiasm and cheek. "

filming

After their success in 1980 with the adaptation of a step into the void , was The Seven Dials Mystery (German title: The Secret of the Seven Dials ) by the production company London Weekend Television in a 140-minute television play adapted and aired on March 8 1981st The team with Pat Sandys, Tony Wharmby and Jack Williams worked again with the same actors: John Gielgud and James Warwick and Cheryl Campbell as "Bundle" Brent. The adaptation stuck closely to the novel, without significant changes.

This second success in the adaptation of a novel by Agatha Christie then led to the implementation of the television series Agatha Christie's Partners in Crime ( detective agency Blunt ) with its pilot episode A dangerous opponent in 1983 .

Important editions English and German language editions

• 1929, first edition UK William Collins and Sons (London), 24 January 1929
• 1929, first edition USA Dodd Mead and Company (New York), 1929
• 1934, German first edition seven clocks : Express Books-Verlag; Vienna; Leipzig
• 1975, new edition with a new title The Last Joker in the translation by Renate von Walter in Scherzverlag

In her autobiography, Christie describes this book as "a happy thriller " and goes on to say that these novels were always easy to write because they didn't ask as much in terms of both plot and planning, especially in contrast to their very carefully planned ones Detective stories. She referred to this period as her period of plutocracy , when she received money for the series rights in the USA, more than she made in the UK and did not have to pay tax on that money. She compares that time to the time she wrote her autobiography, when she had been struggling with income tax problems for over twenty years.

dedication

Unusually for her novels, Christie did not write a dedication for this book.

Audio books

• 2005 The Last Joker (3 CDs): with the original Miss Marple film melody. Read by Peter Kaempfe. Director: Sven Stricker. Translated from the English by Karlheinz Dürr; Authorized reading version. The Hörverlag Munich

• 2008 The Last Joker (6 CDs): only unabridged reading. Speaker: Hans Eckardt. Director: Ann-Sophie Müller. Translation from English by Renate von Walter. Publishing house and studio for audio book productions in Marburg

Web links

• The Seven Dials Mystery on the official Agatha Christie website
• The Seven Dials Mystery (1980) in the Internet Movie Database (English)

Individual evidence

1. ↑ The Observer January 20, 1929 (Page 10)
2. ↑ John Cooper and BA Pyke. Detective Fiction - the collector's guide : Second Edition (Pages 82 and 86) Scholar Press. 1994. ISBN 0-85967-991-8
3. ↑ American Tribute to Agatha Christie
4. ↑ ^{a b} German first edition in the catalog of the German National Library
5. ^ ^{A b} New edition in the catalog of the German National Library
6. ^ The Times Literary Supplement April 4, 1929 (Page 278)
7. ^ The New York Times Book Review April 7, 1929 (Page 20)
8. ↑ The Scotsman January 28, 1929 (page 2)
9. ↑ Barnard, Robert. A Talent to Deceive - an appreciation of Agatha Christie - Revised edition (Page 205). Fontana Books, 1990. ISBN 0006374743
10. ↑ Christie, Agatha. To Autobiography . (Pages 413-414). Collins, 1977. ISBN 0-00-216012-9
11. ↑ Thompson, Laura. Agatha Christie, An English Mystery . (Page 434) Headline, 2007 ISBN 978-0-7553-1487-4
12. ^ Audiobook (licensed) in the catalog of the German National Library
13. ↑ Audiobook (complete) in the catalog of the German National Library