A Charles Paris Mystery

Charles Paris is an unhappily separated (but not divorced, more than 30 years on), moderately successful character actor[Note 1] with a slight drinking problem who gets entangled in various crimes, and finds himself unwillingly in the role of amateur detective.

The radio adaptations have been described by The Guardian as "languid, restful fun",[1] and by The Times as "always a treat... Paris is an ingenious confection... The joy for listeners comes from how Nighy makes almost tangible every observation in Front’s pithy script."[2]

1. Cast, In Order of Disappearance (1975)
2. So Much Blood (1976)
3. Star Trap (1977)
4. An Amateur Corpse (1978)
5. A Comedian Dies (1979)
6. The Dead Side of the Mic (1980)
7. Situation Tragedy (1981)
8. Murder Unprompted (1982)
9. Murder in the Title (1983)
10. Not Dead, Only Resting (1984)
11. Dead Giveaway (1985)
12. What Bloody Man Is That? (1987)
13. A Series of Murders (1989)
14. Corporate Bodies (1991)
15. A Reconstructed Corpse (1993)
16. Sicken and So Die (1995)
17. Dead Room Farce (1998)
18. A Decent Interval (2013)
19. The Cinderella Killer (2014)
20. A Deadly Habit (2018)

Cast, In Order of Disappearance and So Much Blood were both adapted as serials for BBC Radio 2 with Francis Matthews in the lead role in the 1980s.

Bill Nighy has played Paris in a series of BBC Radio productions. The first, an adaptation of So Much Blood for The Saturday Play in 1999, was recorded on location at its Edinburgh Fringe setting. A Series of Murders followed as another Saturday Play in 2004, leading into a number of half-hour serials which began with Sicken and So Die (2006) and continued with Murder Unprompted (2007) and The Dead Side of the Mike (2008), with So Much Blood apparently happening between the last two serials. These serials have all been updated from the novels, and adapted to deal with continuity problems caused by the adaptations being made out of order in relation to the books, with later adaptations featuring more far-reaching changes to the central mysteries.

Cast, In Order of Disappearance, this time starring Francis Matthews as Paris, began airing on Friday 29 January 2010 on BBC Radio 4. From 26 February, its slot was taken for three weeks by an original series from Brett. A three-hour I Did It My Way programme featuring Brett's work was rebroadcast by BBC Radio 7 on Saturday 20 February 2010, including a repeat of A Series of Murders.

This was followed by Murder in the Title (2010) which aired weekly from 22 November to 13 December 2010. Nighy returned to the role in A Reconstructed Corpse (2012). Other recurring cast members include Jon Glover as Charles's agent Maurice, and Suzanne Burden as his estranged wife Frances. On 5 December 2012 a 4-part adaptation of An Amateur Corpse began on Radio 4; Nighy and Burden again played Charles and Frances. A tenth story starring Bill Nighy as Charles began broadcast on 25 June 2014; this 4-part adaptation of Corporate Bodies also stars Suzanne Burden as Frances.

List of radio adaptations with Bill Nighy as Charles:

Saturday plays

• So Much Blood (recorded on location at Edinburgh Fringe), 1999
• A Series of Murders, 2004

Half-hour 4-part serials

• Sicken and So Die, 2006
• Murder Unprompted, 2007
• The Dead Side of the Mic (So Much Blood set between last 2 serials), 2008
• Cast in Order of Disappearance, began 29 January 2010
• Murder in the Title, began 22 November 2010
• A Reconstructed Corpse, 2012
• An Amateur Corpse, began 5 December 2012
• Corporate Bodies, began 25 June 2014
• A Decent Interval, 9–30 March 2016
• The Cinderella Killer, began 2 December 2016
• Dead Room Farce, 23 February to 16 March 2018
• Star Trap, 6 March 2019
• A Doubtful Death, 22 May to 12 June 2020
• A Deadly Habit, 3 to 24 September 2021