Flavia - and Alan Bradley

It's always a source of pleasure when a friend of mine has a novel or series of theirs adapted for film or television, and in the run-up I keep my fingers crossed that the people who have done the adaptation have done the story justice. This doesn't always happen - the TV versions of books by friends of mine like Tim Heald, Marjorie Eccles, and Liza Cody were not a success, as they were the first to say - but sometimes it really does: Vera, Shetland, Slow Horses and Fallen Angel are among the triumphs that spring to mind.

Now we can add Flavia to the list of successful adaptations. When I saw the film a couple of weeks ago (and started drafting this blog post), I felt especially pleased for Flavia's creator, Alan Bradley, a delightful person whom I always enjoyed chatting to - usually, alas, all too briefly. He was telling me about Flavia when we last met on the Isle of Man about eighteen months ago: see the above photo. 

I was, though, deeply saddened to hear, whilst I was away in France last week, that Alan had died. I had hoped, among other things, to have the chance to discuss his thoughts on the film, and his reaction to the experience of having his book brought to the big screen. Alan was Canadian, and after living in Malta for a time, he settled on the Isle of Man. He was based there when he and I first met at a crime writing conference in Oxford back in 2014. I found him very good company. We met again when I presented a murder mystery on the island five years later - see the photo above. It was very good of him to turn up to the events I did on the island and I feel he was a generous and kindly man, as well as a very talented writer.

What of the film? The script (by Susan Coyne) is based on Alan's first book about Flavia de Luce, The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie. Importantly, the cast is a strong one. The demanding role of the rather precocious Flavia is well handled by young Molly Belle Wright, and there are stellar names in the cast: Toby Jones, Martin Freeman, and Jonathan Pryce. With such excellent actors, you are in safe hands, and they all give strong performances.

A dead body turns up in the garden of Flavia's home, and when her father (Freeman) is accused of having committed the murder, Flavia sees it as her job to turn detective and secure his freedom by tracking down the real killer. Stamp collecting, of all things, plays a significant part in a storyline that has enough variety and light amusement to keep the viewer entertained. I enjoyed watching the film and I bet Alan was delighted with it. I'm sad that he's gone but so glad that he lived to see the film made and enjoying good reviews.