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Detection Club
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{{more citations needed|date=June 2010}} {{Short description|Group of British mystery writers founded in 1930}} [[File:The Detective Club Meeting.jpg|thumb|upright=2|The Detection Club meeting in 1932, when [[G. K. Chesterton]] was its President]] The '''Detection Club''' was formed in 1930 by a group of British [[Mystery fiction|mystery]] writers, including [[Agatha Christie]], [[Dorothy L. Sayers]], [[Ronald Knox]], [[Freeman Wills Crofts]], [[Arthur Morrison]], [[Hugh Walpole]], [[John Rhode]], [[Jessie Louisa Rickard]], [[Baroness Orczy]], [[R. Austin Freeman]], [[G. D. H. Cole]], [[Margaret Cole]], [[Edmund Clerihew Bentley|E. C. Bentley]], [[Sir Henry Aubrey-Fletcher, 6th Baronet|Henry Wade]], [[Constance Lindsay Taylor]] and [[H. C. Bailey]]. [[Anthony Berkeley Cox]] was instrumental in setting up the club, and the first president was [[G. K. Chesterton]]. There is a fanciful initiation ritual with an oath written by Sayers, and the club holds regular dinner meetings in London. ==Guidelines== In addition to meeting for dinners and helping each other with technical aspects in their individual writings, the members of the club agreed to adhere to [[Golden Age of Detective Fiction|Knox's Commandments]] in their writing to give the reader a fair chance at guessing the guilty party. These fair-play "rules" were summarised by one of the members, [[Ronald Knox]], in an introduction to an anthology of detective stories. They were never intended as more than guidelines, and not all the members took them seriously. The first American member (though then living in the UK) was [[John Dickson Carr]], elected in 1936. The club continues to exist, although the fair-play rules have been considerably relaxed. A number of works were published under the club's sponsorship; most of these were written by multiple members of the club, each contributing one or more chapters in turn. In the case of ''[[The Floating Admiral]]'', each author also provided a sealed "solution" to the mystery as he or she had written it, including the previous chapters. This was done to prevent a writer from adding impossible complications with no reasonable solution in mind. The various partial solutions were published as part of the final book. ==Initial membership== The founding members of the club in 1930 were [[H. C. Bailey]], [[Edmund Clerihew Bentley|E. C. Bentley]], [[Anthony Berkeley Cox|Anthony Berkeley]], [[G. K. Chesterton]], [[Agatha Christie]], [[G. D. H. Cole]], [[Margaret Cole]], [[Alfred Walter Stewart|J.J. Connington]] [[Freeman Wills Crofts]], [[Clemence Dane]], [[Robert Eustace]], [[R. Austin Freeman]], [[Ronald Barnes, 3rd Baron Gorell|Lord Gorell]], [[Edgar Jepson]], [[Ianthe Jerrold]], [[Milward Kennedy]], [[Ronald Knox]], [[A. E. W. Mason]], [[A. A. Milne]], [[Arthur Morrison]], [[Baroness Orczy]], [[Cecil Street|John Rhode]], [[Jessie Rickard]], [[Dorothy L. Sayers]], [[Helen de Guerry Simpson|Helen Simpson]], [[Constance Lindsay Taylor]], [[Sir Henry Aubrey-Fletcher, 6th Baronet|Henry Wade]], [[Victor Whitechurch]] and [[Hugh Walpole]].<ref>Edwards, Martin. ''The Golden Age of Murder''. HarperCollins, 2015.</ref> Over the following two decades further members were elected to the club: [[Anthony Gilbert (writer)|Anthony Gilbert]] (1933), [[E. R. Punshon]] (1933), [[Gladys Mitchell]] (1933), [[Margery Allingham]] (1934), [[Norman Kendal]] (1935), [[R.C. Woodthorpe]] (1935), [[John Dickson Carr]] (1936), [[Cecil Day-Lewis]] (1937), [[Muna Lee (writer)|Muna Lee]] (1937), [[Maurice Guinness]] (1937), [[E.C.R. Lorac]] (1937), [[Christopher Bush (novelist)|Christopher Bush]] (1937), [[Cyril Hare]] (1946), [[Christianna Brand]] (1946), [[Richard Hull (writer)|Richard Hull]] (1946), [[Alice Campbell]] (1946), [[Val Gielgud]] (1947), [[Edmund Crispin]] (1947), [[Dorothy Bowers]] (1948), [[Douglas G. Browne]] (1949), [[J. I. M. Stewart|Michael Innes]] (1949), [[Michael Gilbert]] (1949)<ref>Edwards, Martin. ''The Golden Age of Murder''. HarperCollins, 2015.</ref> and [[Mary Fitt]] (1950).<ref>Hallett, Judith P. & Stray, Christopher. ''British Classics Outside England: The Academy and Beyond''. Baylor University Press, 2009. p.50 </ref> Membership was initially limited to those considered to be writing [[Golden Age of Detective Fiction|pure detective novels]], rather than mystery thrillers. This began to change when [[Eric Ambler]], known for his thrillers and spy novels, was elected in 1952.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.nytimes.com/1979/09/30/archives/the-detection-club-detection.html#:~:text=The%20full%20break%20with%20tradition,should%20not%20have%20been%20eligible | title=The Detection Club | work=The New York Times | date=30 September 1979 | last1=Symons | first1=Julian }}</ref> Several notable detective writers including [[Philip MacDonald]] and [[Josephine Tey]] were never invited to join the club, while [[Georgette Heyer]] who wrote detective stories alongside her better-known [[regency novel]]s turned down an invitation. ''[[Daily Express]]'' columnist [[Nancy Spain]] was considered for membership but was rejected.<ref>Edwards p.408</ref> Future president [[Julian Symons]] was initially rejected before eventually being admitted in 1951. [[Ngaio Marsh]], a major figure in detective writing, only joined later in life.<ref>Edwards p.256-67</ref> Subsequent members of the Club included [[Andrew Garve]], [[H. R. F. Keating]] and [[John Bingham, 7th Baron Clanmorris|John Bingham]]. [[Martin Edwards (author)|Martin Edwards]] charted the early history of the Club in his 2015 book ''[[The Golden Age of Murder]]''. == The oath == <blockquote>Do you promise that your detectives shall well and truly detect the crimes presented to them using those wits which it may please you to bestow upon them and not placing reliance on nor making use of [[Revelation|Divine Revelation]], Feminine Intuition, [[Mumbo jumbo (phrase)|Mumbo Jumbo]], Jiggery-Pokery, Coincidence or [[Act of God]]?<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.sfu.ca/english/Gillies/Engl383/Oath.html |title=Document Title |access-date=2017-08-26 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111005235200/http://www.sfu.ca/english/Gillies/Engl383/Oath.html |archive-date=2011-10-05 |url-status=dead }}</ref></blockquote> == Presidents == *[[G. K. Chesterton]] (1930β1936) *[[E. C. Bentley]] (1936β1949) *[[Dorothy L. Sayers]] (1949β1957) *[[Agatha Christie]] (1957β1976) *[[Ronald Barnes, 3rd Baron Gorell|Lord Gorell]] (1957β1963) *[[Julian Symons]] (1976β1985)<ref> {{cite ODNB |last=Lejeune |first=Anthony |title=Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, online edn |date=Sep 2004 |url=http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/article/55772 |doi=10.1093/ref:odnb/55772 |access-date=10 June 2010 }}</ref> *[[H. R. F. Keating]] (1985β2000) *[[Simon Brett]] (2000β2015) *[[Martin Edwards (author)|Martin Edwards]] (2015β)<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.watsonlittle.com/martin-edwards-named-the-next-president-of-the-detection-club |title=Martin Edwards named the next President of The Detection Club! |date=23 June 2015 |publisher= Watson, Little |access-date=22 November 2015}}</ref> Lord Gorell shared the presidency with Agatha Christie, who only agreed to accept the role if a co-president was appointed to conduct the club's proceedings.<ref> {{cite ODNB |last=Morgan |first=Janet |author-link=Janet Morgan, Lady Balfour of Burleigh |title=Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, online edn |date=Sep 2004 |url=http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/article/30926 |doi=10.1093/ref:odnb/30926 |access-date=10 June 2010 }}</ref> == Publications == *''[[The Scoop and Behind the Screen]]'' (1931, [[round-robin story|round-robin]] novellas) *''[[The Floating Admiral]]'' (1931,1932, round-robin novel) *''Ask a Policeman'' (1933) *''The Anatomy of a Murder'' (1936) (US title ''The Anatomy of Murder'' (New York, Macmillan, 1937) True crime essays *''Detection Medley'' (1939; US title, ''Line-Up,'' 1940; short stories, some original, some reprints; edited by John Rhode) *''Mystery Playhouse presents The Detection Club'' (January 1948); six 30 minute radio plays by club members on [[BBC Light Programme]] written in aid of club funds *''No Flowers By Request'' (round-robin novella, 1953) *''Verdict of Thirteen'' (1978; original short stories, edited by [[Julian Symons]], published by Faber and by Harper & Row) *''The Man Who...'' (1992); original short stories in honor of [[Julian Symons]]'s 80th birthday, edited by [[H. R. F. Keating]], published by Macmillan]) *''The Detection Collection'' (2005; original short stories in recognition of the Club's 75th anniversary, edited by [[Simon Brett]], published by Orion and by St. Martin;'s (2006)) *''The Verdict of Us All'' (2006; original short stories in honor of [[H. R. F. Keating]]'s 80th birthday, edited by [[Peter Lovesey]], published by [[Crippen & Landru]] and [[Allison & Busby]]) *''The Sinking Admiral'' (2016, round-robin novel, published by [[Collins Crime Club]]) *'' Motives for Murder'' (2016; original short stories in honor of [[Peter Lovesey]]'s 80th birthday, edited by [[Martin Edwards (author)|Martin Edwards]], published by [[Crippen & Landru]] and by Sphere ([[Little, Brown Book Group]]). *'' Howdunit: A Masterclass in Crime Writing by Members of the Detection Club'' (2020; edited by [[Martin Edwards (author)|Martin Edwards]], published by [[Collins Crime Club]]). * ''Eric the Skull'' (2020; a 45-minute [[BBC Radio 4]] play, being a fictionalised account of the setting up of the club, written by Simon Brett and produced by Liz Anstee). *''Playing Dead'' (2025; original short stories in honor of [[Simon Brett]]'s 80th birthday, edited by [[Martin Edwards (author)|Martin Edwards]], published by [[Severn House Publishers]]) ==References== {{Reflist}} ==Further reading== * Edwards, Martin. ''[[The Golden Age of Murder]]: The Mystery of the Writers Who Invented the Modern Detective Story''. London: HarperCollins, 2015. ==External links== * [http://www.cs.appstate.edu/~sjg/detectionclub.html Detection Club: list of publications] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060722134926/http://www.cs.appstate.edu/~sjg/detectionclub.html |date=2006-07-22 }} * [http://elegsabiff.com/2013/04/20/a-z-challenge-rules-of-the-detection-club-circa-1929/ Detection Club admission ceremony and oath] * [http://gadetection.pbworks.com/w/page/7930445/Detection%20Club%2C%20The List of members] {{Authority control}} [[Category:Detective fiction]] [[Category:Members of the Detection Club| ]] [[Category:Clubs and societies in London]] [[Category:Organizations established in 1930]] [[Category:1930 establishments in the United Kingdom]] [[it:AA.VV.]]
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