'Detective' - Murders in the Rue Morgue episode

[Paul Woolf]

Dear All

I am currently researching an article about film and television adaptations of Edgar Allen Poe's detective story 'The Murders in the Rue Morgue' for publication next year in a Cambridge University Press book.

In September 1968, the BBC broadcast an episode of the series 'Detective' based on Poe's story and starring Edward Woodward. According to a piece written for the Programme Preservation Society's journal in 2000, the episode was destroyed.

I am trying to ascertain whether a copy of the episode might since have been discovered and, if so, how it would be possible to view it. If anyone has any information that might be of help, I would be very grateful.

Please reply to this post or contact me directly at:

[e-mail]

if you can help.

Yours sincerely
Paul Woolf

Department of American and Canadian Studies
The University of Birmingham

[Ian Beard]

Wiped I'm afraid - but pop over to the Mausoleum Club and see if one of the issues of THE GAZETTE is still available: there's a decent article in one issue on this production.

[Bob]

Guest-Paul said:

Dear All

I am currently researching an article about film and television adaptations of Edgar Allen Poe's detective story 'The Murders in the Rue Morgue' for publication next year in a Cambridge University Press book.

In September 1968, the BBC broadcast an episode of the series 'Detective' based on Poe's story and starring Edward Woodward. According to a piece written for the Programme Preservation Society's journal in 2000, the episode was destroyed.

I am trying to ascertain whether a copy of the episode might since have been discovered and, if so, how it would be possible to view it. If anyone has any information that might be of help, I would be very grateful.

Go here and order issue one:

www.the-mausoleum-club.org.uk/publications/pubs.htm

The episode hasn't been recovered sadly, but there's a good article about it in the gazette.

[Paul Woolf]

Dear Ian Beard and Bob

Many thanks for your help.

Best wishes
Paul Woolf

[Colin Cutler]

Hello Paul

In case you were interested, the early Mausoleum website version of my article on the Rue Morgue production is still on-line:

www.the-mausoleum-club.org.uk/Detective/rue_morgue.htm

This was considerably expanded when I revised it for the Gazette, but it might still prove a useful starting point

Delighted to hear that someone else is also interested in researching this play - one of the truly great losses of sixties television. The director - James Cellan Jones - was devastated to learn that it was wiped.

Drop me a line if you need further info

Regards

Colin