272 episodes

All About Agatha is a podcast all about, well, Agatha. Agatha Christie, of course: the Queen of Crime, a real-life Dame of the British Empire, and author of sixty-six mystery novels that spanned the Twentieth Century, defining a genre. For five years, Catherine Brobeck and Kemper Donovan revisited these novels in publication order, ranking them according to pre-set criteria (plot, character, etc.). Tragically, Catherine Brobeck passed away at the end of 2021. Since then, Kemper has completed the podcast's ranking project, and now contents himself with celebrating the greatness of Christie by attempting to solve the ultimate mystery where she is concerned. Why Christie--and Christie alone--endures as powerfully as she does.

All About Agatha Christie All About Agatha (Christie)

    • Arts

All About Agatha is a podcast all about, well, Agatha. Agatha Christie, of course: the Queen of Crime, a real-life Dame of the British Empire, and author of sixty-six mystery novels that spanned the Twentieth Century, defining a genre. For five years, Catherine Brobeck and Kemper Donovan revisited these novels in publication order, ranking them according to pre-set criteria (plot, character, etc.). Tragically, Catherine Brobeck passed away at the end of 2021. Since then, Kemper has completed the podcast's ranking project, and now contents himself with celebrating the greatness of Christie by attempting to solve the ultimate mystery where she is concerned. Why Christie--and Christie alone--endures as powerfully as she does.

    Overbearing, Rich, and Idiomatic: The Americans of Agatha Christie

    Overbearing, Rich, and Idiomatic: The Americans of Agatha Christie

    It's time to discuss those pesky Americans who appear in the Christie canon, and answer such burning questions as: Are all Americans millionaires? (Alas, no.) Do all Americans speak solely by way of idiom? (Happily, no.) I was also able to answer a ton of mailbag questions, which involved one hundred percent more Spice Girls than I expected it to.
    The following titles are spoiled to varying degrees in this episode: The Actress; After the Funeral; The Big Four; A Caribbean Mystery; Cat Among the Pigeons; Death on the Nile; Destination Unknown; Endless Night; Evil Under the Sun; Lord Edgware Dies; The Mirror Crack’d from Side to Side; Motive v. Opportunity; The Mousetrap (though only in a minor way), Mrs. McGinty’s Dead; A Murder is Announced, Murder on the Orient Express; The Soul of the Croupier; Sparkling Cyanide; They Do It With Mirrors.
    To visit and subscribe to the podcast's Patreon page, click here.
    Visit the podcast on Twitter and Instagram.
    Visit me personally on Facebook at Kemper Donovan Books, or at my personal website.
    Click here to purchase tickets for my panel at the upcoming Agatha Christie Festival.
    You can buy my debut mystery novel, The Busy Body, at your bookseller of choice (make it an indie if you possibly can!) in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia and New Zealand.

    • 1 hr 15 min
    Collecting the Collectors: The Gays of Agatha Christie (Special *PRIDE* Edition... with Bonus Jamie Bernthal!)

    Collecting the Collectors: The Gays of Agatha Christie (Special *PRIDE* Edition... with Bonus Jamie Bernthal!)

    It's raining long-haired, antique-loving, architecturally-inclined men! And a few women, too! June is Pride month for the LGBTQIA+ community here in the United States, which I took as an opportunity to explore the topic of "gay" characters in Christie... along with revisiting an interview Catherine Brobeck and I did with long-time friend of the podcast, Jamie Bernthal. Enjoy, my dears!
    The following titles are spoiled to varying degrees in this episode: The Mousetrap, The Rats, “Death by Drowning,” “Greenshaw’s Folly,” After the Funeral, Cards on the Table, Endless Night, Five Little Pigs, Hallowe’en Party, Lord Edgware Dies, The Mirror Crack’d from Side to Side, The Moving Finger, Mrs. McGinty’s Dead, A Murder is Announced, Murder is Easy, Nemesis.
    To visit and subscribe to the podcast's Patreon page, click here.
    Visit the podcast on Twitter and Instagram.
    Visit me personally on Facebook at Kemper Donovan Books, or at my personal website.
    Click here to purchase tickets for my panel at the upcoming Agatha Christie Festival.
    You can buy my debut mystery novel, The Busy Body, at your bookseller of choice (make it an indie if you possibly can!) in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia and New Zealand.

    • 1 hr 53 min
    Interview with Journalist Karen Robinson on the Discovery of a Rare, Early Agatha Christie Artifact

    Interview with Journalist Karen Robinson on the Discovery of a Rare, Early Agatha Christie Artifact

    It isn't every day a new discovery is made regarding a physical record of Agatha Christie's writing, especially one from her earliest days as a writer.... Thank you to journalist Karen Robinson for sitting down with me to talk about What We Did in the Great War by Agatha Christie... and by others in the VAD in Torquay during the First World War! It was a fantastic discussion.
    For information about the exhibition in London where you can see this handmade magazine for yourself, click here.
    To visit and subscribe to the podcast's Patreon page, click here.
    Visit the podcast on Twitter and Instagram.
    Visit me personally on Facebook at Kemper Donovan Books, or at my personal website.
    Click here to purchase tickets for my panel at the upcoming Agatha Christie Festival.
    You can buy my debut mystery novel, The Busy Body, at your bookseller of choice (make it an indie if you possibly can!) in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia and New Zealand.

    • 45 min
    Ten Little Poirots & Marples: Ranking Agatha Christie's Detectives on the Screen

    Ten Little Poirots & Marples: Ranking Agatha Christie's Detectives on the Screen

    It's another episode focused on the adaptations of Agatha Christie: specifically, those talented actors who have brought life to Monsieur Poirot and Miss Marple in films and television for nearly 100 years now. Who will win the title of Greatest Poirot and Greatest Marple of Them All? And how will the rankings leading up to my #1 picks shake out? I surprised myself with a few of my choices here, and I look forward to receiving outraged responses from at least a few of you. Special thanks to Scott Ratner for his spirited commentary on one of these actors, and the valuable insights his perspective provided.
    Please note that I spoil the plot of Curtain, and also the 2018 adaptation of The ABC Murders in this episode.
    Click here to purchase tickets for my panel at the upcoming Agatha Christie Festival.
    Please visit and subscribe to the podcast's Patreon page by clicking here.
    You can buy my debut mystery novel, The Busy Body, at your bookseller of choice in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia and New Zealand.
    I mentioned a few different adaptations over the course of this episode. Click below to access them.
    Agatha Christie's Great Detectives Poirot and Marple (Japanese-language animated series)
    Murder by the Book (starring Ian Holm and Peggy Ashcroft)
    Various BBC radio plays
    Viki.com (where you can watch Ms. Ma, Nemesis)
     
     
     

    • 55 min
    *LIVE!* Episode: Interview with Kemper Donovan, Author of The Busy Body (and Busman's Holidayer)

    *LIVE!* Episode: Interview with Kemper Donovan, Author of The Busy Body (and Busman's Holidayer)

    Saturday, April 27th is Independent Bookstore Day here in the United States, and what better way to celebrate than with this live interview from my book tour last week at Schuler Books in Grand Rapids, Michigan?! Special thanks to Elizabeth Bosscher for conducting this interview. I had such a great time sitting down with her.
    If you'd like to visit or learn more about Schuler Books, which has four locations in Michigan, click here.
    Please visit and subscribe to the podcast's Patreon page by clicking here.
    Click here to purchase tickets for my upcoming panel at the Agatha Christie Festival.
    You can buy my debut mystery novel, The Busy Body, at your bookseller of choice (though please do opt for an indie if you possibly can!) in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia and New Zealand.

    • 1 hr 2 min
    Interview with Andrew Winans, Director of The Hollow by Agatha Christie

    Interview with Andrew Winans, Director of The Hollow by Agatha Christie

    Andrew Winans is the director of a new off-Broadway production of Christie's theatrical adaptation of her superb novel, The Hollow. I loved getting to speak with someone who has been in the trenches with his cast of actors and crew of professionals over the past few months, bringing this Agatha Christie play to life....
    To purchase tickets for this run of The Hollow (13-21 April) at The Players Theatre in downtown New York, click here.
    Come visit me on my ongoing book tour for my mystery novel, The Busy Body! Click here for details.
    The Busy Body is available to purchase in the United States, the United Kingdom (where it is available via Kindle for £0.99 for all of April!), and Australia and New Zealand.
    Please visit and subscribe to the podcast's Patreon page here.
    Click here to purchase tickets for my upcoming panel at the Agatha Christie Festival in September.

    • 1 hr 6 min

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