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Murder with style and skeptical asides; and be discrete when you look in the bath tub
"The countryside? A place where the birds and animals wander about uncooked." That's Mrs. Adela Bradley speaking. The place is a large country manor home. The time is the 1920s. And the who include an old friend of Mrs. Bradley, the wealthy Alastair Bing; his daughter Eleanor, who is Mrs. Bradley's god-daughter, confined to a wheelchair since an auto accident two years earlier and who will come into a fortune when she marries; Eleanor's fiancee, Everard Mountjoy; his son, Garde; Garde's best friend (who was driving when Eleanor was crippled), Bertie Philipson; and Garde's house guest, Dorothy Manners. Of course, there are assorted servants as well as Mrs. Bradley's chauffeur, George Moody (Neil Dudgeon). George is big, capable man who dislikes boredom as much as Mrs. Bradley does. <
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>Adela Bradley (Diana Rigg) is a wealthy woman of a certain age, a divorcee, a psychoanalyst, a catcher of criminals, a woman who drives about in a Rolls Royce, enjoys cocktails, is skeptical about many things, especially love and husbands, and who some might say is, in one of the great descriptive words of the Twenties, louche. "I'm never entirely sure if I'm famous or notorious," she confides to us in one of her asides spoken into the camera. "Someone once said famous is to live in poverty and end up as a statue. Naturally, I prefer to be notorious."<
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>Little does Mrs. Bradley realize that during her weekend at the Bing estate, where Eleanor's engagement to Mountjoy will be formally announced, she will encounter murder. That's in addition to calculated emotional manipulation, pre-planned adultery, psychotic obsession and a shocking discovery that takes place in a bath tub. There also is a red herring that, in a well disguised twist, turns out not be a herring after all. Several people wind up getting happily married, a state that neither we nor Mrs. Bradley expect to last for long.<
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>Does this all sound a bit over the top? Or just "Scary biscuits!" as one character says? Actually, it's a solid story, thanks to Diana Rigg. She brings to the role such authority and skeptical amusement that the plot becomes a pleasure to follow. Rigg was 60 when she made this 90-minute TV movie (followed the next year by four additional episodes). She's a first-rate actress to begin with; she looks a knock-out in some almost outlandishly sleek Twenties dresses and hats; and she doesn't hesitate to show us the character, meaning herself, without make-up. If you like British mysteries, you'll most likely enjoy this one. The DVD transfer is excellent. Extras include a key cast biographies and a cast list.

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Serendipity
So glad to have stumbled upon such a classic and, at the same time, entertaining sleuth! Dame Diana Rigg stars in this first installment of the PBS Mystery! series as the rich and sophisticated Mrs. Adela Bradley, based on the character created by Gladys Mitchell.<
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>The action takes place in the coziest - and most adept to murder - of British places: a country estate, belonging to the rich Bing family. John Alderton stars as Adela's old flame and Master of the Estate. Although they both have taken different paths and married other partners, they have remained old friends, and Adela was chosen as his daughter Ellenor's (a.k.a. "Mouse", played by Emma Fielding) godmother. The reason for Adela's visit to the estate is precisely Mouse's engagement party. So, after attending the funeral of her ex-husband - and arriving late for it, Adela heads to the Bing Estate, driven in her Rolls Royce by her fervent admirer and trustworthy chauffeur, George Moody (played by Neil Dudgeon). Her presence comes in handy too, when the groom is found dead in the bathtub... and the big surprise is not particularly his death, but something physical about him - and it has nothing to do with the attraction to the bride, who has been paralyzed for the past two years due to an unfortunate accident. But in bringing the murderer to justice, Adela must face a personal crossroads that not even her very unique cynicism can hide.<
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>This pilot allows us to discover and get a taste for more mysteries in the series, which will delight women mystery fans in particular, especially if they are interested in fashion. I can honestly say the best achievement of the series is the costumes. Ms. Rigg dons the 1920's style in a way I've never seen before, and her elegance pairs only with her natural sophistication and the charm of the character. As an extra feature, the DVD includes a virtual tour for the personal computer, of the inside sets designed by Edward Gorey, cast biographies and details of other PBS Mystery! productions. <
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>Like Ms. Rigg says in the intro to the DVD about Mrs. Bradley, "I liked her a lot", and look forward to more of her adventures... and a lot more of those clothes!

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Welcome to the Jazz Age
Dame Diana Rigg, best known as thoroughly independent Emma Peel of THE AVENGERS, stars here as Adela Bradley, a thoroughly idenpendent woman of the '20's. Adela has been married but has managed to 'correct the error', and now has embraced the new study of psychology applying it to solve the various crimes that seem to happen around her.<
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>Adela has been invited to her god-daughter, Eleanor's engagement party. The young woman's life had been filled with tragedy; her mother's early death, and then a car accident that has left Eleanor confined to a wheelchair. Finally it seems that life is beginning to improve for the young woman, Adela is introduced to the fiance, a charming young man, all is well until the groom to be is found dead in the bath. An event that is shocking for more than one reason! Still all involved conclude that it is an unfortunate accident (or perhaps a fortunate one) all except for Adela that is. <
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>Soon there are more matters that bear looking into, a shooting, blackmail and some interesting actions that are not quite what they seem. Naturally Adela sorts things out in the end if not quite to the satisfaction of all.<
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>The characters are delightful, particularly Mrs Bradley who is given to wry asides to the camera. The relationship between Adela and her chauffeur George is introduced but not explained, leaving the viewer to wonder just what, if anything is going on between the two. This is very much in the style of the 'cozy' mystery, a small isolated group of suspects, a quirky hero and sidekick whose lives are as important as the plot. There is an underlying current of risque matters that is more reminscient of Sayers than Christie.<
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>This is for anyone who is a fan of Christie, Sayers or Wodehouse as well as those of Diana Rigg. The story is fast paced, characters well done, the production is excellent and the mystery well planned and fairly laid out for the viewer - all clues are present but challenging to sort out. In addition the devices of Adela's comments, the witty dialogue and subplots make this a delight.