The nursery rhyme on magpies is recalled with rip-roaring twists in the TV series Magpie Murders, an adaptation of Anthony Horowitz’s book. Three fans discuss the popular show
Lesley Manville in Magpie Murders. Pic Courtesy/Youtube
Interlaced themes
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Reading a book or the original text is usually more enjoyable than a re-imagined piece. Holding Magpie Murders [the book] and travelling between 1955 and the present made me traverse the many layers of the plot and its characters. However, with the series, the multi-sensory nature of the medium distinctly attracted me. The book bore a multiplicity of themes and that might have allowed creators to tinker with the on-screen possibilities. When Susan Ryeland [played by Lesley Ann Manville] is readying her car to leave for Suffolk, she catches a glance of Atticus Pünd [played by Tim McMullan] in her rear-view mirror. The suddenness introduces scare, but then, this association between a real person and a literary character lives on through guidance and confrontation. In the story from the 1950s, Pünd leaves for Saxon-on-Avon with his young apprentice. A red convertible passes them by on the way; this is Ryeland’s car — such visual elements brought the structure of a whodunit within a whodunit to life.
Soumya S Hazra, 29, business professional
Not out of humour
I was appearing for my university exams, and couldn’t sit to read it at a stretch. As a result, the plot seemed confusing to me. On watching it, I could feel the charm of an Agatha Christie-like murder mystery. Christie’s stories blend into the English countryside in a pensive way. In Horowitz’ work, grave things are communicated in a playful tone. The show has an eye for sarcasm and humour. I like that contemporary instances were highlighted more than the book within [Conway’s book situated in the 1950s].
Rahul Kumar Sahoo, 26, assistant art director
A trusted woman narrator
The book didn’t have Susan Ryeland towards the start. She emerges as a vital character later on. But, the show begins holding her hand. The viewers are told it is as much about Ryeland’s life being changed as it is about the overarching mystery. Most crime thrillers either have a know-it-all smug detective or an irreverent investigator. The representation of an adult woman — a workaholic not ready to settle with her partner — out to seek the truth of Alan Conway’s death impressed me. As a reader, I found Alan harsh for peeping into the lives of his friends and acquaintances and using them as characters in his book. The emotional turmoil of these real persons on discovering the part they’ve been made to play by Alan dawned upon me while watching the series.
Monalisa Jena, 27, fashion designer
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