Why Didn't They Ask Evans? is a mystery novel by Agatha Christie, first published in the United Kingdom by the Collins Crime Club in September 1934 and in the United States by Dodd, Mead and Company in 1935 under the title of The Boomerang Clue. The UK edition retailed at seven shillings and sixpence (7/6)

Isaac Anderson in The New York Times Book Review (18 September 1935) concluded, "Frankie and Bobby are not nearly so brilliant as amateur detectives usually are in books, but you are sure to like them, and you may even be able to forgive Agatha Christie for leaving out Hercule Poirot just this once".

The Observer (16 September 1934) started off by saying that, "there is an engaging zest about Agatha Christie's latest novel" and concluded that, "the narrative is lively" and "the story is full of action".

Milward Kennedy in his review in The Guardian of 21 September 1934 said after summarising the set-up of the plot that, "Poirot has no part in this book; instead, a young man and a young woman who blend charm and irresponsibility with shrewdness and good luck contrive amusingly and successfully to usurp the functions of the police. The fault which I find is the overimportance of luck. For the villains it was, for example, singular good luck which enabled them to discover and identify an obscure vicar's fourth son asleep on a solitary picnic; it was very bad luck for them that he was able to assimilate a sixteenth times fatal dose of morphia. They were lucky, again, in having always at hand just the properties required to make an extempore murder seem something else; and as for the Bright Young Couple – but these are defects which are little noticeable in the gay stream of Mrs Christie's narrative. Perhaps I should not have noticed them had I not read the book so quickly that, in a secluded village, there was nothing for it next day but to read it again with a sterner eye but no less enjoyment".

Robert Barnard wrote of the book in 1980 that it was "Lively, with occasional glimpses of a Vile Bodies world, though one short on Waugh's anarchic humour and long on snobbery ('Nobody looks at a chauffeur the way they look at a person')." His critique was that the novel was "Weakened by lack of proper detective: the investigating pair are bumbling amateurs, with more than a touch of Tommy and Tuppence".

Publication history

  • 1933, The McCall Company (abridged version as part of Six Redbook Novels), 1933
  • 1934, Collins Crime Club (London), September 1934, Hardcover, 256 pp (priced at 7/6 – seven shillings and sixpence)
  • 1980, Pan Books in association with Collins, 188pp
  • 2012, 2022, William Morrow (imprint of HarperCollins), Paperback, 304pp

The novel was first published in the US in the Redbook magazine in a condensed version in the issue for November 1933 (Volume 62, Number 1) under the title The Boomerang Clue with illustrations by Joseph Franké. This version was then published in Six Redbook Novels by The McCall Company in 1933, prior to the publication of the full text by Dodd Mead in 1935. The other five condensed novels in this volume were The Thin Man by Dashiell Hammett, The Figure in the Fog by Mignon G. Eberhart, The Cross of Peace by Philip Gibbs, White Piracy by James Warner Bellah and Parade Ground by Charles L Clifford.

Book dedication

The dedication of the book reads:<br/>

"To Christopher Mallock<br/>

in memory of Hinds"

The Mallock family were friends of Christie's from the years before her first marriage. They staged amateur theatricals at their house, Cockington Court, near Torquay in which Christie, managing to overcome her usual crippling shyness, took part. The allusion to Hinds is unknown.

Dustjacket blurb

The blurb on the inside flap of the dustjacket of the first UK edition (which is also repeated opposite the title page) reads:<blockquote>"Believe it or not, Bobby Jones had topped his drive! He was badly bunkered. There were no eager crowds to groan with dismay. That is easily explained – for Bobby was merely the fourth son of the Vicar of Marchbolt, a small golfing resort on the Welsh coast. And Bobby, in spite of his name, was not much of a golfer. Still, that game was destined to be a memorable one. On going to play his ball, Bobby suddenly came upon the body of a man. He bent over him. The man was not yet dead. "Why didn't they ask Evans?" he said, and then the eyelids dropped, the jaw fell...<br/> It was the beginning of a most baffling mystery. That strange question of the dying man is the recurring theme of Agatha Christie's magnificent story. Read it and enjoy it."<!--n.b. Due to the age of this edition, this blurb is no longer subject to copyright --></blockquote>

International titles

thumb|1997 German translation

This novel has been translated into various languages other than its original English. Twenty-six are listed here, some published as recently as 2014. This is in keeping with the author's reputation for being the most translated author. <!-- please include translator, publisher, year, and ISBN to additions to this list, and fill in missing information for titles already on the list. No need to repeat the English title. -->

  • Bulgarian: Защо не повикаха Евънс? /Zashto ne povikaha Evans?/
  • Catalan: La cursa del bumerang translator Esteve Riambau, 1996, Barcelona: Columna
  • Chinese: 悬崖上的谋杀 /Xuan ya shang de mou sha translators Lisidi Ke, Gang Ye, 2010, Beijing: Ren min wen xue chu ban she
  • Czech: Proč nepožádali Evanse?
  • Danish: Hvorfor spurgte de ikke Evans? translator Michael Alring, 1999, Copenhagen: Peter Asschenfeldts nye Forlag
  • Dutch: Waarom Evans niet?
  • Estonian: Miks nad ei kutsunud Evansit?
  • Finnish: "Askel tyhjyyteen" translator Kirsti Kattelus, 1989, Helsinki: WSOY
  • French: Pourquoi Pas Evans ? translator Jean Pêcheux, 2014, Paris: Éditions France loisirs
  • German: Ein Schritt ins Leere, translator Otto Albrecht van Bebber, 2005, Frankfurt am Main: Fischer-Taschenbuch-Verlag
  • Greek: Οκτώ κόκκοι μορφίνης
  • Hebrew: כדור במגרש הגולף (Ball in the Golf Field) 1960 translator unknown. ?מדוע לא ביקשו את אוונס translator: Dov Halachmi 1980
  • Hungarian: Miért nem szóltak Evansnek?
  • Italian: Perché non l'hanno chiesto a Evans?
  • Japanese: 謎のエヴァンズ殺人事件 /Nazo no evuanzu satsujin jiken translator Tadae Fukizawa, 1989, Shinjuku: Shinchosha Publishing
  • Norwegian: Hvorfor spurte de ikke Evans?
  • Polish: Dlaczego nie Evans? translator Katarzyna Kasterka, 2014, Wrocław: Wydawnictwo Dolnośląskie
  • Portuguese (Brazil): Por que não pediram a Evans?
  • Portuguese (Portugal): Perguntem a Evans
  • Romanian: De ce nu i-au cerut lui Evans
  • Russian: Почему не Эванс /Potchemu ne Evans?/ translator not known, 1998, Warszawa: Proszynski i S-ka
  • Serbian: Zašto nisu pitali Evansa?, translator Tea Jovanović, 2008, Beograd: Mladinska knjiga
  • Slovak: Prečo nepožiadali Evans?
  • Slovene: Zakaj ne Evans? translator Zoja Skušek, 2012, Ljubljana: Mladinska knjiga
  • Spanish: Trayectoria de boomerang
  • Swedish:
  • Turkish: Ceset dedi ki ... translator Gönül Suveren, 1980s, İstanbul: Altın Kitaplar Yayınevi
  • Ukrainian: Чому не Еванс? /Chomu ne Evans?/

Adaptations for television

1980

Why Didn't They Ask Evans was adapted by London Weekend Television and transmitted on 30 March 1980. Before this production, there had been relatively few adaptations of Christie's work on the small screen as it was a medium she disliked and she had not been impressed with previous efforts, in particular a transmission of And Then There Were None on 20 August 1949 when several noticeable errors went out live, including one of the "corpses" standing up and walking off set in full view of the cameras. Problems were encountered during the 1979 ITV strike which lasted three months and led to replacement production personnel when the strike ended, including a change of director. The original intention was that the 180-minute teleplay would be transmitted as a three-part "mini-serial", but ITV then decided to show it as a three-hour special with maximum publicity, especially for Francesca Annis in the role of Frankie.

Locations

Much of the film was taped on location in Cuddington and Long Crendon in Buckinghamshire. Hall Barn, Beaconsfield, Buckinghamshire doubled as the Bassington-ffrench residence and Castle Ashby in Northamptonshire was used as Lady Derwent's home.

<gallery mode="packed">

File:Church of St Nicholas, Cuddington, Buckinghamshire (geograph 4660836).jpg|Cuddington church where Bobby's father is vicar

File:Cuddington, Bernard Hall - geograph.org.uk - 184670.jpg|Cuddington location

File:Hall Barn Beaconsfield Buckinghamshire.jpg|Hall Barn, the Bassington-ffrench home

File:Arley Station, Severn Valley Railway.jpg|Arley Station was used as a railway station

File:High Street, Long Crendon-geograph-4402278-by-Bikeboy.jpg|Long Crendon location

File:Castle Ashby (35571730485).jpg|Castle Ashby House

</gallery>

The production was faithful to the plot and dialogue of the book. Two notable changes were made. The first is the recognition in the isolated cottage that Dr Nicholson is Roger Bassington-ffrench in disguise. In the novel, it is Bobby who recognises the deception as the man's ear-lobes are different from those of the doctor whom he had glimpsed previously. In the adaptation, Frankie witnesses one of Nicholson's patients attacking him in the sanatorium when his face is badly scratched. In the cottage, she realises the scratches have disappeared. The second change comes at the end when, instead of writing to Frankie from South America, Roger lures her to a deserted Merroway Court, makes much the same confession as appears in the book's letter and tells her he loves her, asking her to join him. When she refuses, he locks her in a room of the house (to be freed by Bobby the next day) but does not harm her as he makes his escape abroad. The production was first screened on US television as part of Mobil Showcase on 21 May 1981, introduced by Peter Ustinov.

Adaptor: Pat Sandys<br/>

Executive Producer: Tony Wharmby<br/>

Producer: Jack Williams<br/>

Directors: John Davies and Tony Wharmby<br/>

Artwork: John Tribe

Principal cast:

  • Francesca Annis as Lady Frances (Frankie) Derwent
  • Leigh Lawson as Roger Bassington-ffrench
  • James Warwick as Bobby Jones
  • Connie Booth as Sylvia Bassington-ffrench
  • John Gielgud as Reverend Jones
  • Bernard Miles as Dr Thomas
  • Eric Porter as Dr Nicholson
  • Madeline Smith as Moira Nicholson
  • Doris Hare as Rose Pratt
  • Joan Hickson as Mrs Rivington
  • Roy Boyd as Alan Carstairs
  • James Cossins as Henry Bassington-ffrench
  • Robert Longden as Badger Beadon

2011

Patrick Barlow loosely reworked Christie's novel as a two-hour television film starring Julia McKenzie as Miss Marple, a Christie character who does not appear in the original novel. It was first transmitted on Wednesday, 15 June 2011, on ITV. Among the major changes to the plot:

  • Miss Marple is portrayed as a friend of Bobby's mother (Bobby's father does not appear), and joins the investigation while masquerading as Frankie's governess.
  • The time period of the book is shifted from the early 1930s to the late 1950s to match the timeframe used by the rest of the ITV Marple series.
  • The characters of Leo Cayman, Amelia Cayman, Badger Beadon, Henry Bassington-ffrench, Vicar Jones and Dr Thomas are omitted.
  • Thomas Bassington-ffrench is a small boy in the novel, but in the film he is a cold and introverted teenager.
  • New characters and subplots are introduced, including Sylvia's two children Tom and Dorothy Savage, Wilson the butler, Commander Peters and Claude Evans. Evans, portrayed as an orchid-grower and a friend of the Savages, is murdered to throw Bobby, Frankie and Miss Marple off the track.
  • Sylvia Bassington-ffrench and Alan Carstairs undergo name changes to become Sylvia Savage and John Carstairs, respectively. Sylvia becomes a drug addict in this version, her fixes supplied by Dr Nicholson.
  • John Savage (called Jack in this adaptation) is made into Sylvia's husband, who is murdered before the film begins.
  • Bobby does not find the body whilst playing golf; he is taking a walk across the cliff. The attempt on his life is by running his bicycle off the road rather than a poisoned beer.
  • Roger's role in the household is changed: Instead of being Sylvia's brother-in-law, he is the piano player at Castle Savage, and since the Caymans are deleted and there is no photograph for him to take from Carstairs' body, he is not present when the body is discovered.
  • The motive for the murders is changed: Roger and Moira are revealed to be brother and sister, children of Sylvia from her first marriage, to Jack Savage's brother George. Jack and Sylvia began an affair while the brothers were living in China shortly before the beginning of World War II, and Jack had his brother, a vocal opponent of the Japanese, murdered. As the war intensified, Jack returned to England with Sylvia but forced her to leave her children behind, where Roger was placed in an orphanage and Moira, it is implied, was used as a "comfort girl" by the Japanese army. The denouement is changed; Moira and Roger are interrupted in an attempt to kill Sylvia by injecting her with poison, but are surprised by the other suspects. During the ensuing struggle, Tom shoots Roger, and Wilson kills Moira by injecting her with the poison she intended for Sylvia.

The Castle Savage scenes were largely filmed at Loseley Park near Guildford – a 16th-century stately home in Surrey belonging to the More-Molyneux family.

The cast for this adaptation included:

  • Julia McKenzie as Miss Marple
  • Sean Biggerstaff as Bobby Attfield
  • David Buchanan as John Carstairs
  • Siwan Morris as Florrie
  • Helen Lederer as Marjorie Attfield
  • Georgia Tennant as Frankie Derwent
  • Samantha Bond as Sylvia Savage
  • Richard Briers as Wilson
  • Freddie Fox as Tom Savage
  • Rik Mayall as Alec Nicholson
  • Hannah Murray as Dorothy Savage
  • Rafe Spall as Roger Bassington
  • Natalie Dormer as Moira Nicholson
  • Warren Clarke as Commander Peters
  • Mark Williams as Claud Evans

2013

It was adapted as a 2013 episode of the French television series Les Petits Meurtres d'Agatha Christie.

2022

In April 2021, it was announced that Hugh Laurie would be adapting the novel for BritBox in 2022. The filming took place in Surrey, mainly in the villages of Shere and Albury, between June and August 2021, and at Three Cliffs Bay in Swansea. The three-part series became available on BritBox on 14 April 2022. It was then shown on ITVX and ITV in April 2023.

References