Towards Zero
Season 3 Episode 3 | 1h 32m 47sVideo has Closed Captions
Murder, sexual tensions and marital mishaps play out during a house party by the sea.
Miss Marple visits her old school friend, the formidable Lady Tressilian, at her Devon Estate. Eyebrows are raised when the dashing Wimbledon tennis star, Nevile Strange, arrives with his new wife, even though his first wife is also attending. Miss Marple finds herself in the midst of a tightly wound group of people where sexual tensions and unresolved jealousies lead on to murder. murder.
Problems playing video? | Closed Captioning Feedback
Problems playing video? | Closed Captioning Feedback
Towards Zero
Season 3 Episode 3 | 1h 32m 47sVideo has Closed Captions
Miss Marple visits her old school friend, the formidable Lady Tressilian, at her Devon Estate. Eyebrows are raised when the dashing Wimbledon tennis star, Nevile Strange, arrives with his new wife, even though his first wife is also attending. Miss Marple finds herself in the midst of a tightly wound group of people where sexual tensions and unresolved jealousies lead on to murder. murder.
Problems playing video? | Closed Captioning Feedback
How to Watch Agatha Christie's Marple
Agatha Christie's Marple is available to stream on pbs.org and the free PBS App, available on iPhone, Apple TV, Android TV, Android smartphones, Amazon Fire TV, Amazon Fire Tablet, Roku, Samsung Smart TV, and Vizio.
Providing Support for PBS.org
Learn Moreabout PBS online sponsorship♪ Such captivating green eyes ♪ ♪ Those tender and serene eyes ♪ ♪ Those never ever mean eyes ♪ ♪ They're so loving and true ♪ ♪ The sea beneath The blue skies ♪ ♪ Is reflecting Your green eyes ♪ ♪ And the trees In the woodland ♪ ♪ Keep reminding me too ♪ ♪ My heart wherein My love lies ♪ ♪ Is telling me... ♪ TREVES: Do you know something, Miss Marple?
I rather suspect that you and I both share a secret passion.
Do we, Mr Treves?
Murder, Miss Marple.
Oh.
Well, I'm not quite sure that I would describe it as such.
Detective stories, they get it all wrong.
They always begin with the murder when the murder should come at the end, don't you think?
MISS MARPLE: In certain cases, perhaps.
But then again... - You see, Miss Marple, I think it would be safe to say I'm pretty expert in these matters.
Oh, without a doubt, Mr Treves.
You've devoted a whole lifetime to the law.
And 99 times out of 100, a murder evolves over years, with all the causes and events bringing certain people to a certain place at a certain time.
All... What's the word?
- Converging, Mr Treves?
- That's it!
Converging!
Converging towards a given spot, and then it comes... Wallop!
Zero hour!
All converging.
Converging.
Towards zero?
Yes!
Bull's eye!
Towards zero!
I bumped into Bunty yesterday.
Did you?
She's asked us to join them in Monte in July.
Wouldn't that be simply divine?
It's too sickening we can't.
We can't, can we?
No, we can't.
I don't want to go to dreary old Devon.
We have to.
I owe it to Camilla.
I know we've got to suck up to her a bit...
It's not a question of sucking up.
It's a question of affection.
And piles of dosh.
You know she hates me.
- Of course she doesn't.
It's all about Audrey.
I know it is.
Camilla's never forgiven me.
She's old.
Her generation finds divorce hard to take.
She even thinks you behaved badly.
I did.
SHE SCOFFS Just because Audrey chose to make such a frightful fuss!
- She had a nervous breakdown.
- She was playing up.
You have to learn to lose gracefully.
You have to accept these things.
- She did.
She divorced me so we could marry.
KAY: 'Anyway, you two had nothing in common.
'She's just like a mangled old dishcloth.
'She gives me the creeps.'
Oh!
Perhaps, we should join Bunty down in Monte Carlo.
But what about Devon?
Camilla?
We could always pop down in September.
But I thought she's always there in September.
- Audrey, you mean?
- Yes, of course, Audrey!
We can't be there at the same time!
She thinks it's quite a good idea.
How do you know what Audrey thinks?
I happened to run into her yesterday.
- Run into her?
You never said.
- You didn't tell me you'd bumped into Bunty till this morning.
Bunty's not my ex-wife!
It was pure chance.
We had a little chat.
Actually, she was very nice.
She even asked how you were.
Oh, that's sweet of her!
And then it sort of came to me... ..how much more sensible it would be if you two could be friends.
It would make me so happy if this could work out.
Preposterous!
The boy must be barking!
It does seem rather odd.
Wives making friends?
Oh, it's too revolting!
No.
No.
It can't be Nevile's idea.
It must have come from that ghastly trollop he married.
People tend to be a little more relaxed nowadays about this sort of thing.
- Not under my roof!
And it's only because Matthew, God rest his soul, was so devoted to the boy.
that I allow that scarlet-toed creature here at all.
I do not like her!
The way she pursued Nevile until his marriage was in tatters!
No, I blame her entirely for the whole thing.
Well, Nevile had a little to do with it!
Well, of course he did, stupid boy!
But if it hadn't been for that harlot's persistence... Poor Audrey!
What that woman's been through!
And she was so nearly such a good wife.
If only she'd been a little more athletic.
REPORTERS CLAMOURING Good morning!
- Nowadays, there's simply no... - Discretion?
Exactly!
So girls like Kay Mortimer go around stealing other people's husbands and gad about with entirely unsuitable types, like that young man who's always hanging around her.
MARY: 'Ted Latimer?'
Yes.
A touch of the dago, I suspect.
Unless he wears make-up, which wouldn't at all surprise me.
Well, he's a friend from her Riviera days.
And I'd very much like to know how he manages to live the way that he does.
By his wits, I would imagine.
CAMILLA SIGHS I expect he'll be loafing about at Easterhead while they're here?
Oh, why can't everyone leave me in peace?
Old Freddie Treves, practically next door at the Balmoral Court.
Thomas Royde, boring us all senseless with tales from Malaya!
- And Miss Marple, of course.
- Oh, and of course, Marple!
SHE SIGHS A sketching holiday.
I ask you!
SHE CHUCKLES She'll be over at Easterhead, too.
Mm!
Marple and the gigolo.
Now, there's a thought!
No doubt she'll be poking her nose in everywhere.
She was just the same at school and such a ghastly swot!
Perhaps, you'd prefer that I put Nevile off.
Oh, no.
Let them all do what they want.
With any luck, I'll be dead by September.
APPLAUSE UMPIRE: Deuce.
CHEERING Advantage, Strange.
His backhand's good.
I'll give him that.
I wasn't expecting to see you here.
Oh, you know me.
Never miss an opportunity.
And how's the devoted wife today?
Absolutely furious.
GROANS OF DISAPPOINTMENT Deuce.
Nevile's got it into his head all of a sudden that Audrey and I... Audrey, mind, that we should become bosom buddies!
- What on earth for?
- I haven't the faintest idea.
Have you ever heard of anything so stupid?
And he wants us all to go on a jolly holiday together down to Camilla's in Devon.
I don't know what's got into him.
- When are you going?
- September, apparently.
It's bound to be HER doing, sneaky little cat.
Don't worry, sugar.
I'll be there to hold your hand.
I'll book a room again at that hotel across the bay.
CHEERING APPLAUSE - Advantage Merrick.
- Oops!
Out!
APPLAUSE The ball was out.
- It was in.
- Of course it was.
UMPIRE: Game, set and championship, Merrick.
6-3, 2-6, 6-4, 7-5.
- That's Nevile's trouble.
He's too bloody sporting.
APPLAUSE CAMILLA: I must say, my dear, I found Nevile's suggestion quite disgusting.
It might, you know, be rather a good thing.
But, you can't want to be here with that dreadful woman?
It's not that bad, and if Nevile wants it...
But do YOU want it?
That's the question.
KNOCKS AT DOOR Yes?
DOOR OPENS - My God!
CAMILLA: What is it?
HE CHUCKLES For a second there, I thought it was Rita Hayworth.
You stupid child!
- Hello, you gorgeous old thing!
- Rude, horrible creature!
How are you?
- Irresistible.
We've been so looking forward to this, darling, haven't we?
- We couldn't wait.
Hello, Camilla.
Kay.
Yes.
Settled in?
Yes, thank you.
Naughty boy!
This is all perfectly ghastly!
- Thomas!
THOMAS: Hello, Mary.
How lovely!
Seven years!
- Nearly eight.
Is it, really?
That's too long.
How's the plantation?
- Damned hard work!
- Rubber, isn't it?
- Yes.
But I'm thinking of branching out into sago.
Sago!
Well...
Nothing's changed much around here.
Oh, except for that vile new hotel.
- Thank you.
- Madam.
Thank you.
THOMAS: Nice of the old girl to put me up.
I hope it hasn't been a bother.
MARY: It's a godsend, believe me.
Audrey's, particularly, looking forward to seeing you.
Is she?
Things have been very difficult, with Nevile and his wife there, as well.
His idea, apparently.
Not a very good one, as it turns out.
- What exactly is the problem?
- Well, that's just it.
It's hard to put one's finger on.
Audrey's been charming about the whole thing, but, one never really knows with her.
HE LAUGHS HEARTILY Mr Treves, sir.
Welcome back to the Balmoral Court.
Oh, Mrs Rogers!
The old gaff all spick and span?
There's been a slight change of plan, sir.
- Oh?
- but I'm sure you won't be disappointed.
HE LAUGHS There she is.
Stately as a galleon.
MARY: Yes.
Dear old Gull's Point.
MISS MARPLE: No!
Stop!
- What the devil?
- Oh, I'm so sorry.
I didn't mean to startle you, but I...
I thought... Ah!
HE CHUCKLES Yes, I'm afraid I've always tended to stand too near the edge.
Yes, it's... it's rather tempting, isn't it?
I had to fetch this.
Thought I'd get some air.
Nevile Strange.
I know.
Jane Marple.
I've just popped in to see Camilla and came up here to try a little sketch.
- A friend of hers, are you?
- Oh, yes.
We go back a long way, on and off.
Such a pity about Wimbledon, Mr Strange.
That boy who beat you, Berwick... Merrick.
A flash in the pan, I'm sure.
The best man on the day.
The sporting life!
Oh, how fascinating!
SHE CHUCKLES You must tell me all about it this evening.
- This evening?
- Mm.
That will be nice.
SHE CHUCKLES SHE SIGHS Goodbye, then, Mr Strange.
Still the same old Thomas!
Thought you might have perked up a bit.
Now, Adrian, he was a bright spark.
Such a waste!
You should have made it to the funeral.
- It was difficult.
- There's no excuse.
He was your brother.
He came off the road very close to here, you know.
- So I gathered.
- Exactly a year ago.
Do you know what he was doing down here?
Haven't a clue!
What's more, he never came to see me, which was most unlike him.
So, good to be back?
Your timing's not too clever, I must say.
Mary mentioned that... Don't know what's got into Nevile, bringing those two together!
SHE SIGHS Still, it may have its compensations.
What do you mean?
You've always had a soft spot for Audrey, haven't you, Thomas?
From the time you were children, when your parents took her in.
She was like a sister to me and Adrian.
Oh, I think she was rather more than that!
And then Nevile came along and snatched her from under your nose, didn't he?
Oh, don't look so miserable!
Perhaps, patience will finally reap its reward.
This is all I could find.
The Illustrated Post.
That'll do, I suppose.
Nevile?
AUDREY: I'm so sorry, Nevile.
I thought you were speaking to me.
Oh, but... - Here.
- Oh, I'm so sorry.
- Who the hell are you?
- Royde.
Thomas Royde.
- Oh, yes.
The man from Malaya.
- That's right.
- Well, if I were you, I'd go back.
Pronto.
NEVILE: Ah, Royde!
Hello, there.
Strange!
Didn't know you'd arrived.
Met the wife, I suppose?
In a manner of speaking!
HE CHUCKLES Yeah.
I'd better go and... - Why did you give it to her?
- It's only a magazine.
You gave it to her and not to me.
What's it matter?
Of course it matters!
I'm your wife!
You humiliated me and that's exactly what she wants!
She's trying to turn you against me.
You've got to stop this.
- Let's leave.
I hate it here.
- We've only just arrived.
Please, Nevile!
We're staying, and that's that.
DOOR SLAMS SHUT Welcome back!
- Miss Marple.
- Ooh!
Thank you.
Thank you.
So, here we all are!
Is Camilla not joining us?
I'm afraid not, Miss Marple.
Nowadays, she prefers her own room.
Is your hotel comfortable?
- Oh, yes.
Most comfortable, thank you.
Yes, it's not a bad old dive!
And top-notch billiards.
MARY: We should all come over one day.
It's got a lovely sandy beach.
I was thinking of going sailing tomorrow.
- I'd like that.
NEVILE: We could all go sailing.
I thought you were playing golf.
I can play another day.
Do you play golf, Kay?
- Hardly!
- She'd be good, if she took the trouble.
She's got a natural swing.
Do you play games, Audrey?
No, I don't.
So, you and Camilla were at school together, Miss Marple?
- Yes, indeed.
- There's a thought.
The two of you in boaters and gym slips!
SHE GIGGLES MISS MARPLE: And how long have you known Camilla, Mr Treves?
Oh, we go back years!
Through Matthew, that's how I know her.
Matt and I took silk together, yeah, and whenever I'm down in this part of the world, I always make sure I see the old girl.
Mr Treves is staying close by, at the Balmoral Court.
You always have the same suite, don't you, Mr Treves?
Not this year, unfortunately.
Some cock-up with the bookings, so they've put me up top.
- Oh.
- Good job they've got a lift.
Dicky ticker, you see.
Still, sharp as a knife, eh, Mr Treves?
Oh, yes.
I haven't forgotten who I am yet!
I say, that Merrick's doing rather well, isn't he?
Gave you a damned good thrashing, at any rate, eh?
TREVES CHUCKLES LATIN RHYTHM PLAYING Move the table, Nevile!
Teddy, dance with me!
Oh!
That hair.
Flame red.
Unforgettable!
LATIN RHYTHM PLAYS IN DISTANCE WHIRRING BELL RINGING Would you care to dance?
Her Ladyship's compliments, Miss Marple, and she would be glad to see you up in her room.
Thank you.
Excuse me.
Everyone behaving themselves?
Yes.
It was the most delicious dinner.
I expect the gigolo put that dreadful racket on or was it the frightful Kay?
They seem to be having a good time.
It's not a bloody dance hall!
Sketching, eh?
- Yeah.
- Been at it long?
- No, but I must say...
Always good with your hands, weren't you?
Mm, needlework, pottery.
All that sort of nonsense.
Too fiddly for me.
Much preferred to be stomping around a pitch with a stick in my hand.
- I remember.
Only exercise I get now is lifting these damn things to my lips!
We weren't that bad-looking, were we, Jane?
No!
I think we were... Look at us now.
Two old crocks waiting to drop off the twig.
WAVES CRASHING AUDREY: My earring.
Ooh!
So... sorry.
Er, wait a second.
- You're pulling.
- Wait a second.
Let me help.
♪ Tender and serene eyes... ♪ So, what do you think to the harem?
- I'm not sure I... - I just can't fathom how a chap could leave Audrey for Kay!
- It does happen.
- Well, of course it happens, but if you were a man, wouldn't she drive you off your nut?
Perhaps.
it won't last.
He may marry again, maybe even return to his first wife.
- To Audrey?
- Mm.
No.
Never!
No, she's too proud.
Ooh, where love is concerned, pride is a quality more often spoken of than acted on.
Don't pontificate, Jane!
It sets my teeth on edge.
What's left of them.
No.
No.
You don't understand.
Audrey was head over heels for Nevile and after he left, she never wanted to see him again.
And yet she's here now?
Perhaps, she wanted to show that she doesn't care any more.
Or would like to think so?
You don't mean she might still hold a candle for him?
- Well... - Oh, no.
No!
No, she's behaving perfectly in an impossible situation, whereas Nevile is behaving very badly indeed.
♪ And I find myself... ♪ - So, tell me about Malaya.
- Ah, Miss Marple!
Dismissed from the royal presence.
Care for a dance?
Oh, that's most kind of you, Mr Treves, but I think, perhaps not.
Just as well.
It'd probably kill me.
BOTH CHUCKLE Oh!
That young fellow knows his onions.
- Yes.
- Quite the professional!
Rather decorative, too.
I wonder what he does for a living.
One can only imagine, eh?
I sense you're quite a shrewd observer, Mr Treves.
You're a shrewd observer yourself.
You know something, Miss Marple?
I rather suspect that you and I both share a secret passion.
Do we, Mr Treves?
And what would that be, I wonder?
Murder, Miss Marple.
Oh.
BARRETT: Time for your tonic, My lady.
Waste disposal on the mend, Barrett?
Oh, no, my lady.
I'll be forever a slave to my bowels.
THOMAS: I see they've acquitted the Morphine Murderer.
It was in The Times this morning.
NEVILE: Morphine Murderer?
Jumped the gun calling him that, in the first place.
Accidental overdose, they decided.
You sound sceptical, Mr Royde.
Well, it sounds pretty dodgy to me.
Where there's smoke, and all that.
I knew a case once.
No, perhaps not, no.
Oh, do go on, Mr Treves.
It concerned two children.
They were playing with bows and arrows.
One shot an arrow through the other one's eye and the poor child died.
"A regrettable accident", the inquest concluded.
- Was that it?
- Yes.
There was, of course, another side to the story.
A farmer, some time previously, happened to have noticed the child who fired the fatal shot, practising.
You mean, it might not have been an accident at all?
Well, I don't know, but it was stated at the inquest that neither child had ever used a bow and arrow before.
- What did the farmer do?
- He did nothing.
Perhaps, he felt the child should be given the benefit of the doubt.
But you're in no doubt, are you, Mr Treves?
TREVES: It was murder, Mrs Strange.
Particularly ingenious and planned down to the last detail.
- What was the reason?
Childish revenge for a perceived injustice.
But to keep hold of that intent, quietly practising day after day, and then, the final piece of acting, with the accident and the pretence of grief.
That could only stem from the wickedest mind!
Well, now, there's food for thought!
- What happened?
TREVES: A change of name.
The child is now an adult, somewhere in the world.
The question is, does that person still have a murderer's heart?
It was a long time ago... ..but I would recognise my little killer anywhere.
Surely not!
TREVES: Oh, yes.
Because of a certain physical peculiarity.
But I'd best not dwell on the subject.
I should be on my way.
- Have another drink, Mr Treves.
- Why not come out for a little?
- I think I should go to bed.
- Thank you.
MARY: Do excuse me.
I must see that Lady Tressilian's settled.
KAY SIGHS You've danced me off my feet, Teddy.
I simply must go to bed.
Good night, everyone.
Good night, Teddy.
Oh, there's a plan afoot to come to Easterhead tomorrow.
Whenever you're ready, Miss Marple.
That's very kind of you, Mr Latimer.
LATIMER: I nearly forgot.
There's something I have to get from the car.
What a restless young man!
SHE CHUCKLES A friend of Mrs Strange, I understand.
- Of Kay Strange, yes.
- Mm.
Confusing, isn't it, having two of them in the house?
More uncomfortable, I would imagine, for the original Mrs Strange.
I expect so.
You were brought up together, weren't you?
You and Audrey Strange?
- Yes.
- You must know her well.
Why did she come, Mr Royde?
I suppose she didn't like to refuse.
I wonder why he would be anxious for such a reunion?
I really don't know.
It's stupid of him, if you ask me.
- Mm.
- Good night.
Good night.
I'm so sorry about that.
Your coat, Miss Marple.
Ooh, thank you.
MISS MARPLE CHUCKLES, SIGHS MARY: You must come again.
- Oh.
MARY: You seem to have cheered her up enormously.
- What have you got there?
LATIMER: Dance records.
Kay asked me to bring them over.
She didn't say.
Ted.
We'll make a move.
Motor's out front.
- Goodbye.
- Goodbye.
- Mr Treves.
Mr Treves?
- Mm?
- I'll walk you back, shall I?
- OK. - It's a beautiful night.
- Yes.
I think I might join you.
A little air would be lovely.
Thank you.
Delightful evening... ..Miss Aldin.
HE CHUCKLES Most instructive.
Instructive?
Hear that, Mary?
We old fogies, you know, we notice quite a lot.
You don't have to tell me, Mr Treves.
Oh, Thomas!
You gave me a shock.
Been down to the ferry for a bit of a walk.
- Oh, nightmare!
- Shh!
Shh!
Quiet as the grave, which is, perhaps, why I feel so much more at home.
Damnation!
- What's wrong?
TREVES: The lift's out of order.
I'm going to have to walk up.
You could always come back and stay the night.
Nonsense!
Fit as a... - Oh!
- Fit as a fiddle.
- Here.
Let me come up with you.
- No, I wouldn't hear of it.
If I go slowly... slowly... One step, two step, up the wooden hill.
Good night, ladies.
Good night, sweet ladies.
- Good night, Mr Treves.
- Good night.
- Good night.
TREVES: Good night.
DOG BARKING DIANA: Donald!
Donald!
Don't run off, Donald!
There's a good dog.
DOG BARKS EXCITEDLY Donald!
Such an odd story Mr Treves told last night, wasn't it?
The child, and the bow and arrow?
Yes.
It sent a shiver up my spine.
He's such a funny old stick.
SHE CHUCKLES KAY GIGGLING MARY: Kay and Ted go quite well together, don't they?
AUDREY: I suppose they do.
They like the same things, have the same opinions.
What a pity.
- What?
- Well, I was going to say, what a pity it was she ever met Nevile.
I'd rather not talk about it.
MARY: Of course.
Stupid of me.
I'd hoped, maybe, that you'd got over it.
There's nothing to get over.
I hope they'll be very happy together.
Well, that's very nice of you.
It isn't nice.
It's the truth.
It's all over now.
NEVILE: Fancy a walk, darling?
See you later, Teddy.
MARY: I actually find them rather exciting... - Be good.
- ..her and Nevile.
They lead such different lives from me.
I quite envy them.
And even you, with all your unhappiness... ..have had experiences that I shall probably never have.
I envy you, too.
I really do.
It can't be much fun for you... ..living with Camilla.
Well, I'm well fed, comfortably housed.
Thousands of women don't even have that.
Poor old Thomas!
I'll go and have a word.
Please don't.
Do you mind if I join you?
THOMAS: Please.
Be my guest.
SEAGULLS CRY HE CHUCKLES SOFTLY - Oh, Mr Latimer.
- May I?
Of course.
You've been deserted, I see.
Yes.
She's been claimed by her legal owner!
Are you enjoying yourself down here, Mr Latimer?
As much as I'd enjoy myself anywhere.
They don't like me, Miss Marple.
The Gull's Point mob.
I'm an outsider, see?
And they don't take to outsiders.
And you don't take much to them, I suspect.
What is it particularly, you don't like about them, Mr Latimer?
They're smug!
That's what I don't like.
Really pleased with themselves.
Shut off from the common herd.
- I'm sorry you feel like that.
- It's true, though.
Perhaps, they may, from time to time, appear, as you say, somewhat smug, but really, you know, inside, I'm sure they're quite human.
Whatever their faults, I don't believe malice to be one of them.
You're not very happy, are you?
Have you always been in love with her?
And she?
I thought so... ..until Strange came along.
And you're still in love with her?
Shouldn't you go away from here, Mr Latimer?
You're only letting yourself in for more unhappiness.
Sweet old thing, aren't you?
By the way, I've got your earring.
Oh, good.
I hate being without earrings.
- Why is that?
- Because of this.
- Oh, yes, old Bouncer bit you.
He had a sore paw, or something.
- Yes.
And I stupidly bent down to stroke him.
I was very young.
It was just after your family took me in.
It was quite nasty, but you can hardly see a thing now.
But still, I know it's there.
- Why did you marry him?
- I fell in love.
But why?
What attracted you?
- You hate him, don't you?
- Hardly surprising, is it?
He's got everything I haven't.
I'm just "dull old Thomas with the gammy arm".
And he married the only girl I've ever cared for.
But you've always known that, haven't you?
I know you don't care for me.
Even as children, you preferred Adrian.
He had a schoolboy crush!
I wish to Christ it had been me in that car and not him!
Don't, Thomas, please.
There's something I don't understand about that.
AUDREY: About what?
- Adrian's death.
It's really very simple.
He died in a car accident.
But what was he doing down here?
Why didn't he visit Camilla?
How should I know?
I'm beginning to think it isn't so simple as just another accident on a country road.
Hello, Audrey.
Royde.
I'll stretch my legs.
It is all right between us, isn't it?
Yes, of course.
I mean, we're good friends and all that?
Yes, why wouldn't we be?
KAY: ♪ Nevile!
♪ NEVILE: Audrey... KAY: Nevile!
- Your wife wants you.
- Kay, you mean.
- That's what I said.
You're my wife, Audrey.
Miss Aldin!
Her Ladyship wants to see you at once.
Oh.
Oh, Mary, I'm so glad you're back.
Camilla, what is it?
It's Freddie Treves.
He's dead.
- Dead?
- Yes, isn't it terrible?
It was so sudden.
He must have collapsed as soon as he got back to the hotel last night.
Well, I can't believe it.
He had a weak heart, of course, but, there was nothing wrong with dinner, was there?
I don't think so.
Would you go to the Balmoral Court and ask if there's anything we can do?
Yes.
Yes, of course.
And take Thomas with you.
He might be useful.
I gather Mr Treves was dining with you at Gull's Point last night.
- Yes, Doctor.
- How did he seem?
- Very well.
- This heart business.
You just never know when it's going to hit you.
I had a look at his medication and it was clear he was in a pretty bad way.
- He was always so careful!
- I'm sure he was, Mrs Rogers, but any extra strain, however slight, and... Bingo!
Such as walking upstairs?
Absolutely, although I'm sure he would have avoided that.
Oh, yes.
He always used the lift.
Always.
- But...
Except last night.
- What do you mean, Miss Aldin?
Well, the lift was out of order, wasn't it?
No, it wasn't.
It hasn't been out of order for weeks.
- What a terrible thing!
- Yes.
MISS MARPLE SIGHS Perhaps, it was some sort of misunderstanding, or a practical joke.
It's not very funny.
One of the guests, or maybe one of the porters.
Oh, poor Mr Treves!
As the doctor said, he did have a very weak heart.
- You bastard!
- Argh!
Oh, dear!
- This is not what you think.
- It's exactly what I think!
You just can't keep away from her, can you?
Oh, for God's sake, Kay!
- I'll leave you alone.
- Yes, I wish you would!
Yes, that's right!
Run away!
You've got what you wanted!
This has absolutely nothing to do with her!
Blame me, if you like.
Oh, I do like!
Making me look like an idiot!
What sort of man are you?
- A pretty poor one.
You come after me, you divorce your wife...
It's no good, Kay.
We don't belong.
I won't let you go back to her!
I'll kill you first and her, too.
I expect you'll be glad when things get back to normal.
Do you still play the piano?
- I'm afraid I've let it slip.
- You used to play rather well.
I thought you didn't like music.
I often wondered how you could manage an octave.
Your hands are so small.
I've got a long little finger.
Mm!
That means you're selfish.
MARY: Is that true?
Yes, it is.
If you're unselfish, you have a short one.
Your left hand's what you're born with, and your right hand is what you make of your life.
Now, Nevile here's a very interesting case, aren't you, darling?
Look how small his left-hand little finger is.
Whereas his right one's quite long.
Which shows just how selfish he's become!
Hmm!
An old wives' tale.
And you know all about them, don't you?
How long is it now, you've been with Lady Tressilian?
Oh, well, I came when my father died, so, er, going on 15 years now.
I...
I'm 35, if that's what you want to know.
No, I wasn't meaning...
I've had this since I was very young.
It's rather ridiculous, isn't it?
I wonder what Mr Treves would have to say about it.
Tell us about your arm, Mr Royde.
It happened when I was a child.
I was jammed in a door during an earthquake.
SHE GIGGLES It left me rather lop-sided.
KAY GIGGLING Stop it, Mr Royde, please!
THUNDER RUMBLING I think I might pop over to Easterhead and catch Latimer for a game of billiards.
- Will you take the car?
- No, the ferry.
- It's pouring!
- I know.
I am going to bed.
I've got a killing head!
Good night.
- Good night.
Night.
FOOTSTEPS RECEDING DOOR OPENS Better be off.
If you please, sir, Lady Tressilian would like a word.
There are certain things, Nevile, that I will not permit in my house.
Now, I have no wish to listen to anybody's private conversations, but if you and your wife insist on brawling in full view... - I'm sorry about that.
- You wish Kay to divorce you so that you and Audrey can remarry.
Is that right?
If that's the gist of what you've heard...
I will not allow it.
I would have thought that's MY business.
You've used my house to make contact with Audrey, or else she's used it.
She's done nothing of the sort!
Kay is your wife.
She has rights of which you cannot deprive her.
You've made your bed.
Now lie on it!
NEVILE: It's got nothing to do with you!
CAMILLA: It has everything to do with me!
And Audrey, what's more, leaves this house tomorrow!
NEVILE: You can't do that!
CAMILLA: Don't you raise your voice to me!
NEVILE: I will not have it!
THUNDERCLAP SHE SHRIEKS The first blow smashed the bone and killed her.
The second one was just to make sure.
MALLARD: How long has she been dead?
I'd put it between ten and midnight.
And this is what hit her, is it?
DOCTOR: Presumably.
She must have been hit with the back of it.
Oh, that's a... that's a bit awkward.
Damned awkward!
The whole thing's awkward.
She was struck, you see, on the right temple.
Whoever did it must have stood here, on the right-hand side of the bed, looking towards the head of the bed.
There's no room on the left.
- Left-handed?
That's the easiest explanation.
The niblick's right-handed, sir.
Perhaps, it didn't belong to the man who used it, sir.
Supposing it WAS a man.
It's heavy enough for anyone to have landed a terrible swipe.
But you couldn't swear this was the weapon, could you, Doctor?
I'd need to analyse the blood and the hairs.
Do you think she was awake when she was hit?
- She looks fairly astonished.
- Unless she slept like that.
Oh, lovely set of prints, sir.
Very obliging chap!
He leaves you the murder weapon, a good set of prints.
It's a wonder he didn't leave his card!
I better see to Barrett.
- Who?
Lady Tressilian's maid.
She was found in a coma early this morning by the young housemaid, Alice.
She's the one who found the body.
She'd been doped with barbiturates.
Had she, now?
DOCTOR: She could've rung for help till she was blue in the face.
Her maid was out for the count.
Someone had spiked her senna pods.
I've not heard that one before.
So, someone who knew all the household routines.
That's where you come in, old chap.
DOOR OPENS DOOR CLOSES Do you think someone could've handled this with gloves on after the fingerprints were made?
Not without smearing them.
And these are clear as day, sir.
Big beauties, they are.
MALLARD: Too big for a woman, do you reckon?
I'd say so, sir.
That bell-pull... ..don't quite fit.
DOOR CLOSES This is Thomas Royde, an old friend of the family.
Audrey Strange.
And, erm, this is Nevile Strange and Kay Strange, Nevile's wife.
Good morning.
And this lady?
Oh, I'm sorry.
This is Miss Marple.
- Jane Marple?
- Yes.
Good morning, Superintendent.
I don't believe we've met.
No, madam, but a colleague of mine, Colonel Melchett, has spoken of you on more than one occasion.
Well, I hope?
Well, he's certainly spoken of you.
Dear Colonel Melchett!
SHE CHUCKLES SOFTLY Are you staying here too, Miss Marple?
Oh, no, Superintendent.
I'm staying at the Easterhead Bay Hotel, but I knew Lady Tressilian of old.
A terrible shock.
- Well, yes, to all of us.
But we're anxious to help in any way.
As far as we can tell, the house doesn't seem to have been broken into.
That would appear to be the case, madam.
Does anybody recognise this?
Is that what... How horrible!
Looks like one of mine.
Can I see?
Yes, it is.
- Golf as well as tennis, sir?
Oh, yes.
I saw you at Wimbledon.
My daughter's a great fan... - Good.
- ..of tennis.
She's particularly keen on that Merrick chap.
Certainly knows how to hit a ball, doesn't he?
So, ladies and gentlemen, if you have no objection, we'd like to take your fingerprints.
It's purely a matter of routine, you understand.
If you care to make your way into the study, you'll find Detective Sergeant Jones waiting in there with his kit.
Er, sir.
I wonder if you have got any idea, sir, who Lady Tressilian's solicitors are?
Yes.
Askwith and Trelawne of Saltington.
MALLARD: Thank you, sir.
I need to look into the estate.
You mean, who inherits the money?
That's right, sir.
The will, and all that.
- I don't know about her will.
I don't think she had much of her own, but as to the bulk of her property...
Yes, Mr Strange?
..it comes to me and my wife under the will of her late husband, Sir Matthew.
He was my official guardian, you see.
He and Lady Tressilian looked after me when my parents died.
He left the estate in trust for his wife only during her lifetime.
- Any idea of the amount?
- Not offhand, no.
Somewhere in the region of 100,000.
- Each?
- Between us.
A tidy sum, nonetheless.
It is, yes, although, erm, I've plenty of my own.
MALLARD: At what hour did Mr Strange leave the house?
Twenty past ten, sir, or thereabouts.
I left the front door on the latch, sir, for when he came back from Easterhead Bay.
Do you remember what time that was?
About half past two, sir.
I heard voices, then a car drive away.
And then I heard Mr Nevile come upstairs.
MALLARD: You heard something?
- I couldn't help it, sir.
See, I was going up to bed and I had to pass Her Ladyship's door, and heard her and Mr Nevile going at it hammer and tongs.
Do you remember what was said?
Well, I wasn't listening, like.
Of course you weren't.
Perhaps, you might have caught the odd word.
LIQUID FLOWING - Coffee, Thomas?
- No, thank you.
Something stronger, perhaps?
Where did you find this?
Bundled at the bottom of Mr Strange's wardrobe.
And look at this.
Looks like blood to me, and spattered all the way up the sleeve.
Well done, Williams.
And there's something else, sir.
Red hairs, see?
Here, on the cuff.
And there's brown hairs on the collar and right shoulder, there.
Well!
Well!
A regular Bluebeard, our Mr Strange.
His arm around one wife and the other wife's head on his shoulder.
And look at this, sir.
Could mean he was trying to wash the blood off.
- Where does that lead to?
- Mrs Strange's room.
It's locked.
- From this side?
- The other.
- On her side, eh?
This is where Barrett always kept the senna pods, sir.
Ugh!
Nasty little things.
She used to put them in to soak at midday and they stood there till she went to bed.
So, anybody could get at them.
No prints on the packet, I suppose, or the glass?
Only Barrett's, apparently.
Easy enough just to drop the stuff in, anyway.
An inside job, don't you think, sir?
Excuse me, sir, but I've done all the prints and only one set matches those on the niblick.
Nevile Strange's, I presume?
Planning your escape, Miss Marple?
Oh, Superintendent!
You shouldn't really be up here, you know.
That's why I'm on my way down.
There was something I was going to tell you... - The thing is, Miss Marple... - ..about the night before last.
Poor Mr Treves.
We were dining at Gull's Point... Is this something that could wait, do you think?
No, I'm quite sure it couldn't, Superintendent.
And after dinner, Mr Treves told us a most tragic story that occurred some years ago.
Two children playing with bows and arrows, and one of them ended up dead.
Shot through the eye.
- Dear!
Dear!
- Yes, I know.
Accidents will happen.
But that's just it, Superintendent.
Mr Treves was convinced that it was not an accident, even though the child was acquitted, but quite intentional, planned down to the last detail.
Miss Marple, we really must... And, because of a certain physical peculiarity, he'd recognise the murderer anywhere.
- Did he specify what?
- I'm afraid he didn't.
- This... this'll have to wait.
- But there's more.
When Mr Treves returned to the hotel, he found the lift out of order.
- Look, I don't really see... - But, apparently, it wasn't.
It seems someone put the placard there by accident.
Accidents will happen.
And poor Mr Treves, who had a very weak heart, had to climb the stairs and died, and I can't help feeling, Superintendent, that the placard was put there, not by accident, but by design.
Murder on the off-chance, you could say.
Because he'd recognised at dinner...
The person who shot the arrow.
But please don't let me keep you.
Good morning.
MALLARD: A bit late, wasn't it, sir, to be going off to Easterhead?
It's quite lively over there, superintendent, as I'm sure you know.
And this is something of an early-to-bed household, isn't it?
- I took a key.
- But not your wife?
She had a headache.
Please go on.
I was about to go up to change.
Into what?
I'd been wearing a blue suit, my best, as it happens, and as I proposed taking the ferry, I thought I'd change into an older one.
Dove grey, anthracite lining, double breasted.
We just like to get everything clear, sir.
Do continue.
I was about to go up and change when Hurstall told me that Lady Tressilian wanted to see me.
So, naturally, I obeyed the summons!
You were the last person to see her alive, I think, sir.
Yes.
Yes, I suppose I was.
How long were you with her?
Twenty minutes or so.
Then I changed, hurried off, just about caught the ferry.
Then at the hotel, I eventually, tracked down Latimer.
We had a game of billiards and, before we knew it, it was two o'clock.
The last ferry had gone by then, of course, so Latimer, very decently, gave me a lift back.
It's quite a way, all around the estuary.
He dropped me off about half past.
That chat with Lady Tressilian.
All right, was it?
- Why shouldn't it be?
- Well, the thing is, sir, some of your conversation was overheard.
We had a slight disagreement.
It was nothing.
- What about, sir?
HE CHUCKLES Well, as a matter of fact, she ticked me off.
Nothing unusual there.
The old bird was an expert.
Divorce, and all that.
She wouldn't have it, so we both got a bit heated, but we parted on perfectly friendly terms.
That niblick, Mr Strange, any reason why it would have your prints on it?
HE CHUCKLES Well, it's my club!
Of course they'd be on it.
But I certainly didn't bash her over the head with it.
What I mean is, is there any reason why the prints would show that you were the last person to have handled it?
That can't be true.
Somebody else must have handled it afterwards.
Someone wearing gloves.
Not without smudging YOUR prints, sir.
It isn't true.
It simply isn't true.
Then perhaps you can explain why the sleeves of your blue suit are stained with blood?
That's ridiculous!
I wasn't even wearing that suit!
Did you cut yourself, Mr Strange?
No, I did not!
Surely you can't think I did such a thing?
Why should I?
I've known Camilla all my life.
You said yourself, Mr Strange, that you come into a lot of money if she dies.
I don't want money.
I don't need it!
That's what YOU say.
Ring my bank.
They'll tell you.
You must realise, Mr Strange, that we already have sufficient evidence to request a warrant for your arrest.
- What?
- But we've decided to give you the benefit of the doubt... ..for now.
I had a headache, so I went to bed early.
The next thing I knew, that wretched girl, Alice, was screaming the house down.
Your husband, Mrs Strange, did he happen to pop in to see how you were before he went off for the evening?
No.
So, you didn't see him from the time you went to bed until you got up this morning, is that right?
Yes.
I noticed the door between your rooms was locked.
Who locked it?
Mrs Strange?
- What?
The bedroom door.
Who locked it?
- I did.
We'd had a row earlier on, if you must know.
I was furious with him!
Absolutely furious.
Oh, dear.
What was all that about, then?
SHE INHALES DEEPLY That bloody woman!
SHE EXHALES It's all her fault.
She's making him behave like a perfect idiot.
And which woman would that be?
SHE EXHALES His first wife, for goodness' sake!
Audrey.
She got him down here in the first place.
Nevile says it was his idea, but it wasn't.
SHE put the idea into his head and made him believe he'd thought of it himself.
Why would she do a thing like that?
SHE SCOFFS Because she wants to get her hands on him again.
She's never forgiven him for running off with me.
And this is her revenge!
She's got him wrapped around her little finger.
Why didn't you object to coming here, Mrs Strange?
Because it would've looked as though I were jealous.
- Aren't you?
Well, of course I am!
I've been jealous of Audrey from the start!
SHE SIGHS And Nevile's always felt guilty.
He could never quite forget her.
SEAGULLS CRY Anything you'd care to add, Inspector?
Erm... No, sir.
SHE CHUCKLES Well, thank you, Mrs Strange.
We have to ask a good many questions, especially, with your husband inheriting so much from Lady Tressilian.
£50,000.
As much as that?
Oh, how very generous!
We get it from old Sir Matthew's will?
- You knew all about it, then?
- Oh, yes.
He left it to be divided between Nevile and Nevile's wife after Lady Tressilian's death.
I must say, I didn't like her, probably, because she didn't like me.
But it's too horrible to think of someone coming along and cracking her over the head.
It wasn't Nevile, Superintendent.
I'm sure of it.
What makes you so sure, Miss Aldin?
It just isn't like him.
That's why.
I understand he's had a few problems, Miss?
It has all been rather difficult.
And it was his idea to have this little get-together?
So he says.
But you don't think so?
I've always thought that someone else put it into his head.
- Like who, Miss Aldin?
- I don't know.
I really don't know.
Did you know that Lady Tressilian has left her maid, Barrett, a legacy?
Yes, I did.
And that she left you one, too?
- Yes.
- Do you know how much?
Enough to live on.
Lady Tressilian was aware of how very little I have of my own.
I always come here in September and my husband, my ex-husband, wanted to come too, and asked if I'd mind.
It was his suggestion?
- Yes.
- Not yours?
It was his suggestion.
And you agreed?
One doesn't like to be disobliging.
But you were the injured party.
Yes.
And you don't feel any rancour against him?
Not at all.
You have a very forgiving nature, Mrs Strange.
You're sure, are you, that this meeting was not your idea?
- Quite sure.
- Are you on friendly terms with the present Mrs Strange?
I don't think she likes me very much.
Do you like her?
I think she's very beautiful.
Well, thank you, Mrs Strange.
It's most helpful.
You're wrong about Nevile, you know.
We were married for eight years.
He would never kill anyone for money.
I do wish you'd believe it.
Notice any peculiarities yet, sir?
They're all bloody peculiar, if you ask me.
Audrey's a distant cousin.
She lost her parents when she was nine, and my family took her in.
MALLARD: She and the second Mrs Strange haven't been getting on too well, have they, sir?
THOMAS: I can't say that I've noticed.
MALLARD: You know we've found Mr Strange's fingerprints on the weapon?
THOMAS: Yes, he told us.
- And some blood on the sleeves of his jacket?
The same group as Lady Tressilian, it transpires.
Do you think he did it, Mr Royde?
THOMAS: I think it's most unlikely.
MALLARD: Can you think of anyone who seems more likely?
THOMAS: No, I can't.
- Don't loiter.
- Ma'am!
- Shh!
We're now beginning to think the murderer was left-handed.
That narrows down your options, doesn't it, Superintendent?
PHONE RINGING Tipping.
We're on our way.
I'd taken my senna and was getting into bed when milady's bell rang.
Did you notice what time it was?
Twenty-five past ten.
Then as I went down, I spotted Mr Nevile on the stairs.
He was just going out.
Did you see what he was wearing?
His grey double-breasted.
Oh, he did look worried!
Then I went in to Her Ladyship and... SHE CHUCKLES SOFTLY ..she was so drowsy, poor dear, she couldn't remember why she'd rung.
SHE SOBS And that was the last I saw of her!
SHE SOBS UNCONTROLLABLY MALLARD: Is there anyone who doesn't like you very much, Mr Strange?
Oh, I don't think so.
Someone you might've injured in any way?
Well, there is, er, one person.
My... my first wife, Audrey.
- Oh.
But I can assure you, she doesn't hate me.
She's behaved like an angel.
You're a very lucky man, Mr Strange.
But I can't say I liked the case against you, but it would have stood up in court and probably hanged you.
- Sorry, I don't understand.
- After you left her last night, Lady Tressilian rang for her maid.
Then Barrett must have seen her...
Alive and well.
What's more, before she went in to her mistress, she saw you leaving the house.
But the niblick.
My... my fingerprints... She must've been killed with something else, and the club put there to throw suspicion on you, except you're right-handed.
Are you sure there's no-one who'd like to see you hang?
We took Mr Strange across at 10.30 last night.
And did you see him after that?
ENGINE DRONES Did you see him after that?
No, sir.
We didn't bring him back.
Have you come across a bloke called Latimer?
Edward Latimer?
Staying over at Easterhead.
Oh, yes!
Yes!
Handsome young chap.
Looks a bit foreign.
Could be him.
Didn't see him last night, sir, though I did see him this morning.
He popped over first thing.
Came back a few hours ago.
MAN: Waiter!
LATIMER: Nevile came over last night.
He was very down in the mouth over something.
Told me he'd had a row with Lady Tressilian, and I know things have been a bit ropey with him and Kay.
Seemed quite glad to see me, for once.
Couldn't find you at first, I understand?
Can't think why.
I was here.
- All the time, sir?
Well, I may have strolled out for a bit.
Do you know, there was a real stink here last night.
Strange noticed it, too.
Drains, I suppose.
Or a dead rat under the floorboards.
So, when Mr Strange had found you... We played billiards, we had a drink or two, and then I drove him back.
He'd missed the ferry by then and I dropped him off around 2.30.
Oh, just one more thing.
You popped over to Gull's Point this morning, didn't you?
Yes.
Any particular reason?
To pay my respects.
Not that they've ever paid me any, but... ..you like to do the right thing, don't you?
Oh, he's too pleased with himself for my taste, sir.
He's just the type who'd smash his own granny's head if he thought he'd get away with it.
Why would he do it, though?
He doesn't stand to gain.
He's a bit fudgy about what he was up to before Strange tracked him down.
Oh, I don't believe it!
Oh, Superintendent!
Inspector!
I'm so glad I've caught you.
You seem to pop up everywhere, don't you, Miss Marple?
Yes, I do, don't I?
SHE CHUCKLES I'd love to stay and chat, but we really must get on.
Oh, I quite understand, Superintendent.
It's all very convenient, isn't it?
What is, Miss Marple?
The niblick, and poor Barrett in a coma.
A little too convenient, perhaps.
It makes the culprit look rather foolish, don't you think?
And if the culprit were, for the sake of argument, Mr Strange, he may be many things, but a fool he certainly isn't.
BOATMAN: Gentlemen!
- Miss Marple, we really don't have the time.
Well, you see, if it weren't premeditated, why would he be carrying the niblick?
And just supposing it was Mr Strange, purely hypothetical, of course, he'd have had to have been very cross indeed to have suddenly lashed out.
And this is a man known for his even temper.
- We risk the ferry, sir.
- And if it were premeditated and he'd drugged Barrett so she couldn't hear the bell, why on earth would he leave the niblick for all to see?
Doesn't quite add up, does it, Superintendent?
BOATMAN: All aboard the ferry!
Oh, dear.
Something else.
Sir, we've got to go.
Knobs!
I beg your pardon?
The fender knobs in the bedroom next door to the first-floor bathroom.
I popped in there this morning, by mistake, and one of them seemed to be different from the other.
Of course, it might have been my imagination, but...
Please, don't let me detain you.
Don't want to miss the boat, now, do you?
BOATMAN: Gentlemen!
That's it!
That's what she meant.
The left one is brighter than the right.
Check 'em out, Jones.
BIRDS TWITTERING I'm worried, Thomas.
Really very worried.
Mr Treves... Why are you worrying about him?
Well, I've been wondering.
That story he told about the child who shot the arrow.
Why exactly he told it.
There's prints on the right-hand one, sir, but none on the left.
Then this is the one we want.
Those prints will be the maid's, which means this one has been cleaned twice.
Look, sir.
MALLARD: Blood.
I've been trying to remember.
He told it so very deliberately and he said he'd recognise the person as though he already had.
Why should he do that?
You don't think he knew Camilla was going to be murdered, do you?
I don't think that's very likely.
HE CLEARS THROAT A word if I may, sir.
Won't take a minute.
You inherit, as I understand it, half the late Sir Matthew's estate.
Am I right, sir?
- Yes, that's right.
- Who inherits the other half?
- I told you, my wife.
Yes, but which one, Mr Strange?
Audrey, of course.
She was my wife when the will was made.
The bequest is quite simply worded.
Our divorce makes no difference whatsoever.
I take it Mrs Audrey Strange is fully aware of this?
- Yes.
And the present Mrs Strange?
Kay?
I expect she is.
We've never really talked much about it.
I think you'll find, sir, that she's under the misapprehension that the money comes to you and the present Mrs Strange.
How extraordinary!
Well, you know, now I come to think of it, she has mentioned it once or twice, but I always assumed she was just associating herself with my share of it.
Amazing, isn't it, sir, how husbands and wives can go on to one other without having the faintest clue what either one's rabbiting on about?
It doesn't matter much, anyway.
It's not as though we're short of money, whereas it will make a big difference to Audrey.
But surely, sir, since the divorce, she's been entitled to an allowance?
Too proud, Superintendent.
She's always persisted in refusing the allowance I wished to make her.
Now, that is interesting.
Thank you, sir.
HE SIGHS SHE SOBS What the hell are you looking at?
I'm sorry.
Always lurking around, aren't you?
I didn't know you were in here.
- Like a bad smell!
- Come on, now.
Oh, she's got it down to a T, that pathetic little look, and Nevile's fallen for it hook, line and sinker!
No, Kay.
That's not it.
Well, you won't get him!
And you won't get his money, either!
AUDREY: You've got it all wrong.
I've got you bang on from the start!
You're a scheming little bitch and the sooner you get out of our lives, the better!
NEVILE: Audrey!
No!
SHE PANTS No, you don't!
What are you doing?
- I was just...
..I was... Oh, my poor darling.
There's nothing I want any more.
You're so unhappy, aren't you?
You're shivering.
Audrey, I understand.
I do understand.
Don't.
No.
No.
You'll always be mine... ..until the day you die.
SEAGULLS CRY DOG BARKING DIANA: Donald!
Donald, come here!
- Oh, dear.
Oh, dear!
- Oh, Donald, you are naughty!
Down!
He's very excited, isn't he?
I'm so sorry, Miss Marple.
He just seems to be getting worse and worse!
Simply honking, isn't he?
- Oh, dear, yes.
He does seem to be a bit... You can smell him for miles!
I caught him bouncing on a dead fish down on the beach.
Aah!
I'm sure you'd love that, wouldn't you, Donald?
Oh, he did.
He found it flat out amongst the rocks.
I tried washing him in the sea, but it didn't make a bit of difference.
He needs a good soaping, don't you, Donald?
Do you know, I smelt exactly the same thing in the billiards room the other night.
Donald had run off again, naughty boy.
I looked simply everywhere for him.
When I popped into the billiards room, it hit me.
Pooh!
But I still couldn't find him.
Which night was that, Miss Brinton?
Oh, I can't remember exactly, but that nice Mr Latimer was there with the tennis player!
Swoon!
- The same smell, you say?
Oh, Donald, really!
DONALD BARKING Oh, Donald, behave!
I'm so sorry.
MALLARD: Good morning, ladies and gentlemen.
Thank you for gathering again at short notice.
I realise it's an inconvenience to have a house full of policemen when you're trying to digest your breakfast.
But there are one or two things.
Who does this belong to?
Is it yours, Mrs Strange?
No.
No.
It isn't mine.
Miss Aldin?
No, it's not my colour.
And it's certainly not mine.
LATIMER SCOFFS You sure it isn't yours, Mrs Strange?
Perhaps, you'd like to try it on?
She's already told you, Mallard.
It isn't hers.
Mm.
Snug fit.
Maybe it is mine.
I'm always losing them.
It probably is yours, Mrs Strange.
I found it outside your window, pushed down into the ivy, along with its pair.
Look here, Superintendent!
Might I have a word?
DOOR CREAKING We've been finding some very curious things, Mr Strange.
This, for instance... ..which consists, as you see, of a steel fender knob screwed and taped into the handle of a tennis racquet.
Little doubt, I would surmise, that this is what was used to kill Lady Tressilian.
Where on earth did you find that?
Looks like Audrey's old racquet.
The knob had been cleaned and put back on the fender, but the murderer had neglected to clean the screw.
We found a trace of blood on that, Mr Strange.
In the same way, the handle and the head of the tennis racquet had been taped together again and thrown into a cupboard, where they would have remained, if Detective Sergeant Jones hadn't been looking for something of the kind.
- Any fingerprints?
Just one, on the tape binding the racquet.
Of course, you're not going to tell me whose print it is?
The jacket you wore at dinner on the night of the murder had brown hairs on the collar.
- They're mine, I suppose.
- They were a lady's hairs, sir.
And red hairs on the sleeve.
I expect they'd be Kay's.
And the others... Well, they might be Audrey's.
I caught my cuff link in her hair the other night.
In which case, the brown hairs would be on the cuff.
What exactly are you implying?
There's a trace of powder on the inside of the jacket collar.
The same as used by Audrey Strange, which suggests to me that on some occasion, she must have worn it.
And then, there are the gloves.
This is the left-hand one, stained with blood.
She IS left-handed, isn't she?
To strike Lady Tressilian with the right hand would have been awkward, the bed being where it was.
But for a left-handed person... ..no trouble at all.
Are you quite sure this little get-together was your idea, sir?
Are you suggesting that Audrey killed Lady Tressilian just to get her hands on the money?
I'm not suggesting anything of the sort.
From first to last, this crime has been directed at you, Mr Strange.
Ever since you left her she's been brooding on how to get her revenge!
In the end, she decided to have you hanged for murder.
She chose an evening when you'd quarrelled with Lady Tressilian, wore your jacket, so it would be stained with blood, left your niblick in the room, knowing we'd find your prints on it.
But the one thing she couldn't account for was Her Ladyship ringing for Barrett, which meant Barrett saw you leaving the house.
Can't be true.
I swear to God, it cannot be true!
Audrey's never borne a grudge against me!
You have the whole thing wrong.
MISS MARPLE: He's right, Superintendent.
You see, I don't believe that Mr Strange did leave Audrey at all.
I rather think that she left HIM for Adrian Royde.
Isn't that so, Mr Strange?
When Audrey was taken in by the Royde family, a great rivalry developed between the two boys.
But then, she married Mr Strange, and that was an end to the matter.
Adrian, however, bided his time and finally made his move.
They planned to run away together.
Then Adrian was killed in a car accident.
That is the reason Audrey went to pieces.
Mr Strange behaved with the utmost chivalry.
He arranged that she should divorce him and that he would take the blame.
I didn't know anyone knew.
One hears things.
Sees things.
Gradually, a picture forms.
So, Audrey has no reason to hate Nevile Strange.
On the contrary, she has every reason to be grateful, and when he arranged this visit, she didn't feel she could refuse.
Audrey Strange, Superintendent, has no motive.
Motive's one thing.
Facts are another.
"Facts" showed that I was guilty not so long ago!
Am I being asked to believe that there's someone who hates both you and Audrey Strange?
Someone who, should the plot against you fail, have laid a trail that led directly to her?
Do you know of such a person, Mr Strange?
Do you, Miss Marple?
Superintendent... ..may I have a word, please... ..in private?
You want ME, don't you?
Mrs Strange, I have a warrant for your arrest on the charge of murdering Camilla Tressilian on Monday last, September 10th.
I must caution you that anything you say will be taken down and may be used in evidence at your trial.
- It's almost a relief.
- Now, now, Audrey, say nothing.
But why not, Nevile?
I'm glad it's over.
I always knew it was you!
I knew you were up to something!
Didn't I tell you, Nevile?
MARY: Kay, please!
Oh, shut up, Kay, for God's sake!
- Why don't you look after her?
- I'm all right.
I should take you away from the lot of them!
- Let me come with you.
- No, Nevile.
You stay.
Is there anything I can do, Audrey?
Dear Thomas.
- I'd better call my solicitor.
- Of course, Mr Strange, but first, there's a little something I have in mind.
I have things to do, Superintendent.
I hope this won't take long.
- It won't, Miss.
I wish you'd tell us what you're up to, Mallard.
Will do, sir.
Don't you worry.
I feel sick.
Deep breaths, Mrs Strange.
Very good for nausea.
Well, ladies and gentlemen, what a very odd case this has been!
One of the oddest I've ever known.
And in keeping with the pervading oddness, I'd like to ask Miss Marple here to take the floor.
Miss Marple.
Thank you, Superintendent.
What the hell is this?
A WI meeting?
The sooner you shut up, Mr Latimer, the sooner we can get back.
I'll be as quick as I can, I assure you.
Poor Mr Treves, the night he died, said something quite pertinent.
That detective stories usually begin with the murder itself, but from his long career at the bar, he'd observed that murder usually comes at the end.
Zero Hour, he called it, and it's Zero Hour now.
Lady Tressilian's death, you mean?
No, Miss Aldin, not Lady Tressilian's death.
I am talking of the murder of Audrey Strange.
You see, this is a crime that has long been planned down to the smallest detail, with one object, and one object only.
That Audrey Strange should be hanged by the neck until she was dead.
And very cunning it was, too.
First, there was the faked evidence against Nevile Strange.
MALLARD: Which we were meant to see through.
Yes, indeed.
And having been presented with one lot of faked evidence...
It wasn't thought likely we'd consider a second edition.
But when you come to look at it, all the evidence against Audrey Strange could have been faked.
The weapon taken from her fireplace, the gloves hidden in the ivy, the prints found on the roll of tape taken from her room.
And then there was the way she behaved when she was arrested.
Practically admitted her guilt, didn't she?
But if Audrey was the victim, why arrest her?
I have to do my duty, sir.
We have to act on the evidence, and at the time, there was no evidence to the contrary, until Miss Marple came along.
Quite by chance, I was chatting to a fellow guest at the hotel, a young lady by the name of Diana Brinton.
The girl with that pesky little dog?
Yes.
Yes.
Donald.
Donald?
A pleasant young girl, but possessed of rather a fanciful imagination.
She reads a lot of historical novels, you see.
And she happened to mention seeing, late one night, the night of the murder, in fact, a... a figure on the other side of the bay.
A figure?
What exactly do you mean?
Well, a figure.
A figure getting out of the water and climbing a rope which hung from a window up there.
Well, I, of course, thought nothing of it.
It was late at night, she may have been half asleep and, as I say, she has an active imagination.
But in the light of later events, I began to think there might be some substance to what she'd said.
So it was an outsider, after all!
Someone who came from the other side of the river, yes.
Someone who wasn't seen between 10.30 and a quarter past eleven that night, and who might've swum across and back.
Hey, Mr Latimer?
But I can't swim!
Everybody knows I can't swim!
Kay, tell them!
Aargh!
KAY SCREAMS Oh, dear!
Mr Latimer!
You pushed him!
LATIMER SCREAMING She pushed him!
Didn't anyone see?
- He can't swim, can he?
- We told you that!
Teddy!
LATIMER SCREAMS - Jones... KAY: He's going under!
LATIMER CONTINUES SCREAMING Teddy!
HE GASPS FRANTICALLY HE CONTINUES TO GASP Teddy!
Oh, Teddy.
Poor Teddy!
See what you've done?
Are you all right, Mr Latimer?
Of course he's not all right!
You might've killed him!
No chance of that, Mrs Strange.
Jones here is highly proficient in the life-saving department.
And look on the bright side.
At least it's eliminated him from our inquiries.
And it can't have been Mr Royde climbing that rope because of his arm, which brings us to you, doesn't it, Mr Strange?
Are you seriously suggesting I swam across the river, climbed into the house, killed Lady Tressilian and then swam back again?
Yes, we are.
NEVILE CHUCKLES Simply extraordinary!
And what about the rope?
You left it there yourself before you caught the ferry.
So, in other words, I framed myself, did I?
I rather think you did.
Priceless!
Absolutely priceless!
And why the hell should I want to kill Camilla?
You didn't, but you did want to hang the woman who'd left you for another man.
And the fact that it entailed killing a woman who'd been something like a mother to you didn't seem to worry you in the least.
You're a bit unhinged, aren't you?
I'm not the one who's unhinged.
Have been, ever since you were a kid.
I looked up that old bow-and-arrow case, see?
It was the same then, wasn't it?
Anyone who does you an injury has to be punished.
Flicked you on the raw, didn't it, when Audrey left you?
So you had to think up something special for her, and what better than to get her hanged?
Pity you didn't have the brains to pull it off!
All that niblick stuff, powder on the collar, hair on the cuffs.
We knew what you were up to all along.
Laughing into our sleeves, weren't we, Miss Marple?
I'm afraid it was all rather childish.
But, you see, like so many murderers, you thought you were being so clever, when, in fact, you were being really rather stupid.
Stupid?
Stupid?
It was the perfect plan, worked out to the last detail, and you never would have guessed it if... if you, Miss Marple, weren't such an insufferable busybody... Watch it, Strange.
..and if that old fool Treves hadn't set you all thinking.
Because he recognised your long little finger, didn't he, Mr Strange?
Which is why you rushed around to his hotel and put the sign on the lift, knowing full well the state of the poor man's heart.
He deserved it!
And so does Audrey!
She deserves everything she's going to get.
VOICE BREAKING: How dare she run off and leave me.
Me!
For that miserable little bastard, Adrian Royde.
She shall hang!
You've got to hang her!
HE SOBS And I want to be there to hear her lousy neck crack!
I was afraid of him as soon as we were married.
A word or a look.
But then I'd fancy I'd imagined it and that I was mad.
And so it was for years, until Adrian reappeared and told me he still loved me, and, suddenly, my world fell into place.
We were planning to run away together.
And that's why he was down here, just a year ago.
But the day I went to meet him, he never came.
Killed in a crash.
And I can't help thinking that Nevile had something to do with it.
- I think you might be right.
- Nevile was very solicitous.
Said no-one need know and that I could divorce him.
I felt so grateful, but I never felt I'd really escaped.
When he suggested we should all come down here, I couldn't refuse.
The story Mr Treves told, the out-of-order sign on the lift, even when Camilla was killed, I didn't make the connection.
When did you realise?
- When he was cleared.
- Hmm.
I saw him looking at me, and I knew.
And you, Miss Marple?
One thing, then another.
The smell in the hotel, for instance, which that girl recognised in the billiards room when Mr Strange was here.
It suddenly came to me, perhaps, he himself was the source of it, and I could only think of one way in which he would have come into contact with a dead fish.
'He must be quite a strong swimmer, 'because he had very little time.
'My theory was confirmed 'when I saw a piece of wet rope in the boxroom.
'Then, after he'd got back into the house, 'he put on his other suit, 'took the weapon, which he'd fixed beforehand, 'and made his way to Camilla's room.'
But, we won't go into that.
Then he slipped back out of his clothes, down the rope, swam back here to meet Mr Latimer.
Then after Mr Latimer had driven him back, he had all night to clear up his traces and set the scene.
Then, of course, there was the bell.
The bell?
Mm.
By Camilla's bed.
'I nearly got it the morning after the murder, 'when I saw a window pole 'and the bell wires on the ceiling.
'It was very, very clever of Mr Strange.
'He rang the bell for Barrett from outside in the passage 'after his row with Camilla, 'so that, when Barrett came down, 'she'd see him leave and thus, he had his alibi.'
FOOTSTEPS RECEDING Poor Camilla didn't know what she'd rung for, because she hadn't rung at all.
SHE SIGHS DEEPLY He struck her back-handed, by the way.
His backhand was always his strong point.
DOG BARKING - Good morning, Miss Marple.
- Good morning.
Oh, Donald, come here!
Is that the girl who saw Nevile climbing the rope?
Yes, it is.
If it weren't for her...
I must thank her.
No, no, no, my dear.
Don't move.
I've...
I've nearly finished.
It was raining, wasn't it, the night of the murder?
Yes, it was.
I...I...
If you just, erm... She must have awfully good eyesight.
Mm, yes!
Perhaps, she eats her carrots.
Miss Marple!
Well, as the Superintendent says, the police have to act on evidence, so I thought I'd help them along a bit by suggesting there was a witness.
Fortunately, Mr Strange's confession has rendered that redundant.
So, what you imagined actually happened.
Do you have a gift for this sort of thing, Miss Marple?
You know, sometimes, I think I do.
SHE LAUGHS SHE SIGHS Miss Marple, would it spoil your sketch if I... No.
No.
Of course not, my dear.
In fact... ..quite the contrary.
Subtitles by accessibility@itv.com
Support for PBS provided by: