Saturday, January 28, 2017
Farewell Bear Facts Paris
Farewell Bear Facts Paris
Again, not much in the way of Bear Facts about Paris that I didnt already say in this post when it was broadcast, so for much more, do go and have a look at that if you havent seen it.
Id thought about a Whodunnit episode of Cabin Pressure for each of the previous series, but I always got stuck on what the crime could be - if it was serious then it wouldnt sit well with the tone of the show, but if it wasnt… then why should I expect anyone care to about it for half an hour. And then I remembered Birling Day. But that brought with it its own problems - firstly, that everyone, both characters and audience, would naturally assume Douglas was the culprit… and second, that I was immediately certain that indeed, Douglas MUST be the culprit. There are many times, over the series, where we see that Douglas life is not all he takes care to portray it as… but this, at least, I couldnt take away from him. If there are any immutable laws of Cabin Pressure, the first, as Martin has learnt by Timbuctu, is that Douglas ALWAYS steals the whisky on Birling Day.
Anyway, I found a way to do it that pleased me in the end, and it was fun writing an episode in such a different way from normal; and pleasing how naturally my main cast fitted into familiar roles from the detective fiction genre - the meticulous detective, his devoted assistant, his no nonsense boss… and his nemesis, the Napoleon of crime.
I also like that by the end of the episode, every single speaking character in the episode (except Mrs Birling, who was deliberately left out so as to attract listeners suspicion) has been accused at least once, and mostly with at least a semi-plausible theory: Douglas, by Martin; Martin, by Douglas; Mr Birling, by Martin and Douglas; Arthur, by Martin; Arthur, by Douglas; Douglas again, by Martin; Phillip, by Douglas; and Carolyn, by Douglas. Not to mention, of course, that extremely suspicious hypothetical circus full of mischievous clowns and their drunken monkey; by Inspector Marples faithful assistant, Shappey of the Yard.
Available link for download
