User Reviews

I'm often grateful for my lousy memory. I read Agatha Christie's novel of this awesome sleuth-story, but completely forget about the denouement. I only remember it was one of her best works. And since I also hadn't yet seen a previous film/TV-adaptation of this book, it almost felt like I was in for a total surprise.

The plot of "A Murder is Announced" is nearly flawless. It's the perfect whodunit, as far as I'm concerned. What starts as a seemingly banal and easily solvable case of attempted murder and suicide, gradually turns into a complex mystery in which every supportive character is a suspect and where eventually more and more murders must be committed to safeguard the culprit's identity. Miss Marple is initially just a spectator, subtle whispering hints into the ears of police constable Craddock, but near the end it also becomes very personal for her. Geraldine McEwan, a truly great actress, depicts the oppressed anger and forced dignity with great class.

One of the things I really like about Agatha Christie is the scrupulously fair way she presents you with all the clues necessary to solve the mystery, but manages to do so in such a way that you usually overlook them.

There's little chance of doing so in this dramatisation - significant plot elements have been rearranged, and are forced on you with sledgehammer over-emphasis. Sublety, a hallmark of Christie's work, is totally missing here.

On the plus side, Geraldine McEwan seems to be coming to terms with her characterisation of Miss Marple. We see flashes of the shrewd observer beneath the fluffy exterior. And the guest cast is full of recognisable faces, so at least there is some mystery left - you can't simply spot the culprit by studying the cast list.

Most of this episode I really enjoyed, though I didn't understand why they rushed Edmund's acceptance of his mother's relationship with Easterbrook, which although I can't remember, is not in the book. Also, Phillippa Haymes in the book had a husband who was supposedly deceased, and I felt that was missed here. I liked the acting, especially from Elaine Page and Zoe Wannamaker, who brought their characters to life, and also the story(generally), music and production values. But it just isn't a patch on the wonderful Joan Hickson series, which is vastly superior to this. Most of the Geraldine McEwan outings have been very disappointing, especially the ones when she isn't in the book, like Sittaford Mystery. I liked the execution of the lights going out scene, though in the Joan Hickson series that scene was very scary, and it wasn't particularly here. I wasn't hugely keen on Catherine Tate as the maid, and I felt her casting was a rather strange choice. However, I enjoyed this episode more than the other ones this series. 8/10 Bethany Cox

In this most recent TV version of Agatha Christie's Miss Marple, Geraldine Macewan brings some refreshing vigor and humor to the role of the spinster sleuth. Whether she's making the police look foolish for refusing to cooperate, or working her way into the confidence of witnesses and suspects, Macewan's Marple is always a pleasure to watch.

Of the four Macewan Marples I've seen, "A Murder is Announced" does not have the strongest supporting cast and this was perhaps the only significant weakness of this very well done mystery.

On the other hand, the screenplay is good, and at times quite clever. Whether it comes close to the quality of the Agatha Christie text, however, is something else again. But it's TV after all, remember that.

The Macewan Marples do offer a lot technically with very nice camera work; lighting, staging and editing which arguably serve as a partial justification for a remake of the series.

But it is Geraldine Macewan's presence on the screen which is the single best reason to view this latest incarnation of Miss Jane Marple. Macewan has this entire catalogue of facial expressions which serve as part of her take on the role. 7/10 for A Murder is Announced.

The local newspaper in the village of Chipping Cleghorn are astonished, and mostly amused, when a personal ad is posted announcing a murder. It gives the time and place, a house in the village. A party is being held at that time and place and at the exact time announced an intruder bursts in, wanting money. He fires a few shots, hitting one of the woman at the party, and leaves. Upon exiting the room, the party- goers find him dead in the next room, shot. He was a Swiss hotel concierge from the village. The police think it was a prank and that the man committed suicide after hitting the woman and panicking. Miss Marple is in the village and thinks it was murder.

Intriguing. Good mystery, with a lot of suspects but no obvious guilty party. Some interesting characters and complex relationships make for engaging viewing.

Cast includes Zoe Wanamaker, who appeared as Ariadne Oliver in several of the Poirot episodes, and Alexander Armstrong (of Armstrong and Miller fame) as Detective Inspector Craddock.

I really have to go back and read these books and watch the Joan Hickson series, which I liked, or stop watching the Geraldine McEwan series. I don't remember the exact plots and characters of all these stories so I watch them and unable to totally trash them.

In A Murder is Announced, from 2005, residents of Chipping Cleghorn see an ad in the paper that a murder will occur -- and gives the address of where it will happen, the date, and time. Several people go to the home, that of a Letitia Blacklock.

At the appointed time, the lights go out, and a young man named Rudi, who works at a hotel, is shot. The police think he put the ad in the paper, intending to commit robbery, but Miss Marple doesn't think so. The killer, she believes,was in the room. Then two more of the attendees are murdered.

Miss Marple finds out that these murders are connected to a murder of an industrialist ten years earlier, and she becomes mired in complicated relationships and fake identities.

All I read on this site is Joan Hickson, Joan Hickson, Joan Hickson. I wasn't crazy about her. I'm so glad we don't use real names on this site - I'd be murdered in my bed. She did NOTHING for me. I always pictured Miss Marple as a sweet little old lady, sort of like Helen Hayes, who was a keen observer of people and could figure out mysteries based on knowing human nature.

Okay, this isn't that - McEwan plays Marple as if she is a smarty-pants who actively involves herself in these crimes. Not to take anything away from her acting -- as someone else says, she has to work with the script she has.

This story was okay -- it is a strong Christie book and not altered too heavily. Enjoyable.

In the small English town of Chipping Cleghorn, a murder is announced in the local newspaper to take place at Mrs Blacklock's house later that evening. Several villagers go to her house thinking that it's a big practical joke. However, things take a sinister turn when the lights go out and shots are fired. None of the guests are murdered except that there is an unknown blonde man lying in the doorway shot dead.

By far and away the best entry in what has otherwise been a dire series. Director John Strickland directs with imaginative flair and has more of a feel for the mysterious atmosphere of the earlier adaptations and he must be commended for not allowing his actors to play it as if it's a wooden amateur dramatics matinée and this is one film that may stand up with the best of the past dramatisations of Christie's works such as David Suchet's Poirot and Joan Hickson's incarnation of Miss Marple.

A splendid edition of Announced, basically faithful in spirit and plot line to the original, and played with uncanny style and skill by Zoe Wanamaker in excellent form.The chemistry among Letiltia Blacklock and her friend Bunny(a great Elaine Page) is perfect,giving a deep insight in their friendship and in their mutually protective relationship,and offering to us a touch of poetry in the dramatic ending, when everything is solved by a formidable Geraldine McEwan .The middle age love story among Cherie Lunghi and Robert Pugh ,even if not present in the novel,is delicate and moving.And Sienna Guillory, with her dark,looming ,menacing presence is the absolute,ultimate Christie dark lady.Excellent,excellent,excellent!

I watched the entire Miss Marple series on "Mystery" on public television. I absolutely LOVED the quirky characters, the intriguing plots, and the excellent casting. Put all of these components together and you get an amazing series of delightfully gripping murders! This particular episode was amazingly complicated in its plot, but was ingeniously simple in its outcome. The zany characters seem excited that the murder has been announced, and all hurry to the party where the crime has been set to occur. However, when the announcement comes true, most of the guests are absolutely horrified that it was a true crime and not simply a delightful party game designed for their enjoyment, though there are one or two who are still exhilarated by the entire fiasco. Miss Marple decides to apply her intellect to the matter, and almost immediately discovers several juicy tidbits of information that are crucial to the case. I recommend this to anyone who enjoys being entertained!

This is the fourth of ITV's new Marple series and easily the best so far, in my opinion. The more grotesque aspects of the other films have been avoided here.

Geraldine McEwan is still a weird version of Miss Marple -- surely no one but no one ever imagined her like this, but she is endearing in her own right and the rest of the cast all act their parts well.

Why the lesbian relationship between two of the characters had to be emphasized, I do not know. In the original it is very understated. It is yawningly predictable that a version made in 2004 would play this aspect up.

So many characters, such an acting ensemble, wonderfully confident, controlled direction. Takes me back to '75 ..Orient Express. I find the complaints of seasoned Christie fans amusing. The text is sacred... Hickson was better...updated for LGBTQ..what happened to Margaret R?...oh please!I

I had to watch a second time to appreciate/comprehend the tidy, absurd, satisfying conclusions. I've watched too much of this genre not to appreciate the inspired, professional acting and production in the service of delighting me. If you're into it, this is an exceptional entry within a genre of quality standards.

This is a famous detective fiction from Agatha Christie and it's a very engaging story. Sadly the adaption was not that great and I expected much more. The lead characters were just fine and Mrs Marple was off the screen most of the time as a lead character.

I won't sign off saying this is a bad one, it's watchable though. As usual, the production design is superb and the show never gets slow anywhere. You should just stick with the flow. There are many good episodes which is way better than this one in the Marple series so I would suggest you watch the rest of the series and then you can start comparing which is the best.

Dame Geraldine McEwan (since she refused becoming a dame in 2002 and an O.B.E. or Officer of the British Empire in 1986), I am going to call her that anyway. Geraldine is a finely trained actress and her role as the new Jane Marple of the new century is a welcome delight. This is a first rate production with stunning visuals of post World War II country life. She is on vacation at a spa and visits her friend's lesbian daughter, Amy, and her partner, Lizzie. Jane probably knows about them from Lizzie's masculine attire. In the first part, they hold hands but not much more. They are discrete in uncertain. Of course, watching the rest of the cast is delightful with Zoe Wanamaker C.B.E. as the prime target who survives being shot and her sister played by the wonderful Elaine Page who mostly does musicals with her excellent singing voice. Like in the previous Miss Marples, I remember her saying "Murder is never simple1!" I am excited to see Geraldine McEwan. I am sure Dame Agatha Christie is smiling down upon her with approval. I am sure that the previous actresses like Dame Margaret Rutherford and Joan Hickson are delighted to see an interest in Miss Marple Mysteries. Oh, I can't forget the music.

On the bright side, this was the best of the initial four of Agatha Christie's Marple. However, as it is an outstanding book, and among the finest Miss Marple mysteries, even ITV would have had to put some effort into ruining it. But they still had a decent go at ruining it anyway!

Please watch the Joan Hickson version. It's glorious. Beautifully written, with every character entirely believable and Miss Marple on great form. Miss Marple, as seen here, is not as nature intended. On ITV, she's even "Marple" in the title! Disrespectful!

This attempts to get through too much in too little time. Miss Hinchcliffe and Miss Murgatroyd, as they are in the book (and the BBC Hickson Version) are indeed a lesbian couple. There's no need for kissing and holding hands, and comments about Miss Hinchcliffe "assuming a manly stance". This film really doesn't do subtlety. Elaine Paige is far too young to be Miss Bunner. Miss Marple's own sexual history is one step too far into sordidness. Geraldine McEwan is very good as a "version" of Miss Marple, but she can only be as good as her material. The material here is wasted. Zoe Wanamaker is as reliable as ever. (Ursula Howells was magnificent as Miss Blacklock in the Hickson Version).

Mitzi The Cook is as aggravating here as she was in the book. The Hickson Version diverges from the original text quite severely, by making Mitzi a "proper" character, and a Holocaust Survivor, not just a "comedy foreigner". In amongst all the other aggravations, she fits in perfectly.

The best of a bad bunch.