A criminally good exhibition!

Crime fiction goes under the microscope at Cambridge University Library in...

Murder by the Book!

Words and story Design by Stuart Roberts
motifs by Hannah WaRRICK

Agatha Christie’s typewriter, Dictaphone and the typescript of her final Poirot novel – so top secret it was kept in a bank vault for three decades – go on display from today at Cambridge University Library, as part of a major free exhibition unravelling the history and enduring popularity of crime fiction.

Murder by the Book: a celebration of 20thcentury British crime fiction puts on display nearly 100 of the most famous, influential and best-selling crime novels in UK history, as well as other consequential works that are now long out of print.

The vast majority of novels on display are drawn from the Library’s unique, world-class Tower collection of first editions in their original dust jackets. The exhibition has been supported using public funding by the National Lottery through Arts Council England.

Aside from Christie’s 1937 Remington typewriter, one of the star exhibits of Murder by the Book is the typescript of her final Poirot novel Curtain – locked away for nearly 30 years and originally supposed to be published posthumously.

It was the last novel published before her death in 1976 and finally revealed a closely guarded secret about Christie’s beloved detective Hercule Poirot – a revelation so culturally significant, that it featured on the front page of the New York Times.

The Christie objects, loaned by the Christie Archive Trust, also include her draft notebooks from the writing of Curtain and Witness for the Prosecution.

Elsewhere, the exhibition also features Wilkie Collins’ writing desk, as well as the Library’s first edition copy of his seminal work The Moonstone.

Murder by the Book is free - but pre-booking is essential. Click here to book your FREE ticket now!

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A close-up shot of the keys on Christie's 1937 portable typewriter.

A close-up shot of the keys on Christie's 1937 portable typewriter.

A close-up shot of the keys on Christie's 1937 portable typewriter.

Exhibition curator Nicola Upson pictured with Christie's 1937 typewriter.

Exhibition curator Nicola Upson pictured with Christie's 1937 typewriter.

Exhibition curator Nicola Upson pictured with Christie's 1937 typewriter.

Agatha Christie's Dictaphone, typewriter, typescript copy of her final Poirot novel Curtain, and her exercise book containing draft notes on the plot of the novel.

Agatha Christie's Dictaphone, typewriter, typescript copy of her final Poirot novel Curtain, and her exercise book containing draft notes on the plot of the novel.

Agatha Christie's Dictaphone, typewriter, typescript copy of her final Poirot novel Curtain, and her exercise book containing draft notes on the plot of the novel.

Curated by award-winning crime author Nicola Upson, Murder by the Book highlights some of the most famous and formative works in the canon, with Upson interrogating why crime remains by far the UK’s most read, bought and borrowed genre of fiction.

"This exhibition is a glorious selection of the novels that have influenced the genre and made household names of Sherlock Holmes, Miss Marple, Jane Tennison and Inspector Morse.

"We look at the brilliant ideas, atmospheric settings, vivid characters, the dark and dangerous themes – and those perfect, unguessable endings.

"Within each section, Golden Age classics sit alongside books by contemporary authors, revealing what these stories have in common and how much the genre has evolved.

"If you love crime podcasts or programmes, you’re going to love this exhibition!

"There are books in the exhibition which have pioneered the genre.

"You’ll meet the detectives that we’ve grown to know and love via extraordinary novels and TV adaptations; and you’ll also see the first use of things like forensics in crime fiction, which perhaps started much earlier than you might think."

Nicola Upson, curator and award-winning crime author

Exhibition curator Nicola Upson with one of the crime novels going on display at Cambridge.

Exhibition curator Nicola Upson with one of the crime novels going on display at Cambridge.

Exhibition curator Nicola Upson with one of the crime novels going on display at Cambridge.

Crime writer Nicola Upson talks about her curation of Murder by the Book.

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First edition crime novels going on display in Murder by the Book.

First edition crime novels going on display in Murder by the Book.

First edition crime novels going on display in Murder by the Book.

First edition crime novels going on display in Murder by the Book.

First edition crime novels going on display in Murder by the Book.

First edition crime novels going on display in Murder by the Book.

First edition crime novels going on display in Murder by the Book.

First edition crime novels going on display in Murder by the Book.

First edition crime novels going on display in Murder by the Book.

First edition crime novels going on display in Murder by the Book.

First edition crime novels going on display in Murder by the Book.

First edition crime novels going on display in Murder by the Book.

First edition crime novels going on display in Murder by the Book.

First edition crime novels going on display in Murder by the Book.

First edition crime novels going on display in Murder by the Book.

First editions on show range from the earliest British crime fiction of Conan Doyle, Charles Felix and Wilkie Collins – to some of the 20th  and 21st century’s most recognisable authors.

The exhibition will also bring to visitors’ attention the legacy and influence of some of the genre’s forgotten classics and their writers – with Murder by the Book examining some of the early voices that influenced not just crime fiction, but sometimes the nation as a whole.

The ending of one 1935 novel in the exhibition – We the Accused by Ernest Raymond – was so devastating that the book is said to have contributed to the ultimate demise of capital punishment in Britain.

Meanwhile, other works, like Raymond Postgate’s Verdict of Twelve (1940), ruthlessly exposed the inherent prejudices of the British justice system by including a killer and religious fanatic on his fictional jury.

How we repaired our first edition copy of The Moonstone (Wilkie Collins) for display in Murder by the Book.

Among the valuable and rare first edition copies going on display are:

  • Hound of the Baskervilles – Arthur Conan Doyle
  • Murder Must Advertise – Dorothy L Sayers (who also invented the ‘Guinness is Good For You’ slogan)
  • The Red House Mystery – AA Milne
  • The Man in the Queue – Josephine Tey (published under the pseudonym Gordon Daviot)
  • Cover her Face – PD James
  • The Murder of Roger Ackroyd – Agatha Christie
  • The Division Bell Mystery – Ellen Wilkinson (former 1930s Labour MP)
  • The Beast Must Die – Nicholas Blake (pseudonym of Poet Laureate Cecil Day-Lewis)
Some of the valuable and rare first editions going on display.

Some of the valuable and rare first editions going on display.

Some of the valuable and rare first editions going on display.

Some of the valuable and rare first editions going on display.

Some of the valuable and rare first editions going on display.

Some of the valuable and rare first editions going on display.

Some of the valuable and rare first editions going on display.

Some of the valuable and rare first editions going on display.

Some of the valuable and rare first editions going on display.

Some of the valuable and rare first editions going on display.

Some of the valuable and rare first editions going on display.

Some of the valuable and rare first editions going on display.

Some of the valuable and rare first editions going on display.

Some of the valuable and rare first editions going on display.

Some of the valuable and rare first editions going on display.

A second half of the exhibition, located along the gallery corridors of Giles Gilbert Scott’s 1934 University Library building, explores crime novels set in Cambridge and works of fiction that inspired film adaptations by Alfred Hitchcock.
(Film posters licensed by alamy).

Murder by the Book: A Celebration of 20th Century Crime Fiction is a free exhibition.

It runs from Saturday March 23, 2024 to Saturday, August 24, 2024.

Pre-booking is essential.

The exhibition and events programme has been supported using public funding by Arts Council England.

The exhibition has also been generously supported by:
The Murray Family
Friends of Cambridge University Library

Photos by Blazej Mikula and Amélie Deblauwe
Films by Blazej Mikula and Lizzie Woodman

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