Thorndyke - Forensic Investigator by R. Austin Freeman
Six short mysteries set in the early 20th century featuring the brilliant Doctor Thorndyke.
Read by Jim Norton
Produced by John Taylor.
Broadcast on Radio 4 Extra, 22 to 29 Nov 2011
160/44; 97 MB total; sound quality excellent
1/6. A Mysterious Visitor
Tue 22 Nov 2011
Thorndyke and his former student Jardine investigate the mystery of a man found dead in a bathing hut.
2/6. The Puzzle Lock
Wed 23 Nov 2011
The detective tackles a mysterious problem: a strong-room lock with a fatally difficult combination.
3/6. A Mystery of The Sand Hills
Thu 24 Nov 2011
The detective investigates the case of a missing swimmer and discovers a devious and gruesome crime.
4/6. The Pathologist To The Rescue
Fri 25 Nov 2011
A young man is accused of murder, but the crime scene compels the detective to look for another culprit.
5/6. The Secret of the Urn
Mon 28 Nov 2011
A man's death piques the detective's curiosity, but is it suicide, murder, or something much stranger?
6/6. Pandora's Box
Tue 29 Nov 2011
When a travelling salesman's box reveals a secret, the detective must prove him innocent of murder.
R. Austin Freeman (1862 - 1943) was a British writer of detective stories, mostly featuring the medico-legal forensic investigator Dr Thorndyke. He claimed to have invented the inverted detective story (a crime fiction in which the commission of the crime is described at the beginning, usually including the identity of the perpetrator, with the story then describing the detective's attempt to solve the mystery) and used some of his early experiences as a colonial surgeon in his novels. Most Dr Thorndyke stories involve genuine, but often quite arcane, points of scientific knowledge, from areas such as tropical medicine, metallurgy and toxicology.
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Replies
Thank you Rick...........................................Elaine
This has always been one of my favorite characters in Victorian detective fiction. It was a very long-running series:
Between 1907 and 1942 Thorndyke appeared in around 60 novels and short stories.
The "inverted detective" concept was later popularised by the Columbo television series.
Thanks, Rick, this is a nice find!
The link for 6/6 is in the main body of the post below the main link. Sorry Bob, your thankyou accidentally erased with erasure of the link when I moved it. ----------- Rick
You are all welcome