Who invented the 鈥淲hodunit鈥�? (from Here For The History)
Uncover the perpetrators behind our love for a murder mystery
It was the vicar that did it! In the billiards room! With a candlestick!
To many fans of a murder mystery, this is perhaps a familiar sounding phrase from a classic 鈥渨hodunit鈥�. But just how did this endlessly popular genre come to be?
Alice and Ben leaf back through the pages of history to uncover just where 鈥渨hodunits鈥� came from, who invented them, and how they鈥檝e endured centuries of changing tastes.
They will discuss multiple lines of inquiry; from our historical appetite for the gruesome and thrilling; to Sir Arthur Conan Doyle; Agatha Christie; and even the impact of the World Wars.
If you enjoy this episode, you can find more episodes of Here For The History on 麻豆社 Sounds. If you鈥檙e outside the UK, you can listen on 麻豆社.com or wherever you get your 麻豆社 podcasts.
Key Sources:
Agatha Christie: A Very Short Introduction - Professor Gill Plain
The TV Crime Drama - Professor Sue Turnbull
Forever England: Femininity, Literature, and Conservatism Between the Wars - Alison Light
Agatha Christie: Lucy Worsley on the Mystery Queen - 麻豆社 / Lucy Worsley
Caught in the Web of Words: Whodunit - Ken Liss
