Bibliofemme News
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23/07/2004
Crime crown goes to Christie
Agatha Christie, famed for her creation of well-loved sleuths Miss Marple and Hercule Poirot, has been voted the UK's favourite detective writer.
The author of such classics as Death on the Nile, Murder on the Orient Express and The Body in the Library came top of a poll of 1500 people, commissioned to mark the DVD and video release of the film version of The Singing Detective.
Christie, who died in 1976, enjoyed much success in her lifetime and was made a Dame of the British Empire in 1971. More than 2bn of her murder mysteries have been sold around the world (her works have been translated into more languages than Shakespeare's) and The Mousetrap, written by her as a birthday present for Queen Mary in 1952, has had the longest run of any play in the world.
Arthur Conan Doyle, the creator of famous Baker Street resident Sherlock Holmes, won second place in the poll. US crime writer Patricia Cornwell came in a close third for her novels starring forensic psychologist Kay Scarpetta.
PD James, whose bestselling books feature Commander Adam Dalgliesh, was fourth, while Raymond Chandler, creator of hard-boiled private detective Philip Marlowe and author of The Big Sleep and Farewell, My Lovely, was fifth.
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