Questions and Answers

For me, the final act of the hugely enjoyable Crimefest 2010 was, as last year, the Criminal Mastermind quiz. The organisers of Crimefest kindly gave me a free pass to the convention on the condition that I returned to ‘defend the title’ that I won last year. My fellow contestants were Peter Guttridge, Ali Karim and Cara Black, and the quizmaster was Maxim Jakubowski.

The format of Criminal Mastermind follows closely the format of the TV show. You have two minutes each on your chosen special subjects in round one, and two minutes on general crime fiction questions in round two. As with exams and crosswords, there is a bit of a knack to it, which is why it is always more difficult for American contestants who haven’t seen the programme. I’ve been involved with four Mastermind quizzes over the years, and each time I’ve appreciated the American contestants’ willingness to have a go at something unfamiliar – not an easy task, especially in that famously menacing black chair, with the lights dimmed and in front of a large audience. You can see us all twitching in the photo before the ordeal began!

The first Criminal Mastermind took place at the London Bouchercon in 1990 – that was where I first met Maxim – and the second at the Nottingham Bouchercon in 1995. I won in 1990, and was runner-up in Nottingham, where the contestants included that marvellous American writer, the late and much lamented Edward D. Hoch.

One alarming feature of the entire week-end was the number of people who came up to me and predicted that I would win. Their faith may have been gratifying, but I couldn't help feeling daunted. My chosen subject was the crime writing of Julian Symons, and various people asked if I had re-read his work in preparation. In fact, I didn’t re-read any of it, since surely nobody setting a quiz would ever plough through the whole body of work - you can have too much information! So I assumed I could get away with relying on my long-standing enthusiasm for one of the great British crime writers. Doing a quiz is a bit like doing an exam – you just have to stay calm and focused and not worry about the things you don’t know, of which - as in life - there are always far too many. Happily, it all worked out and I’ll be receiving an inscribed Bristol glass tankard by way of commemoration. But next year, I’ll be very happy to sit in the audience instead of in the dreaded black chair and watch others suffer!

Crimefest panels

I Fought the Law was the slightly mysterious title of my first Crimefest panel this year. I moderated an appealing group comprising Diane Janes, Frances Brody, Alison Bruce and Dan Waddell. The theme was crime fact and fiction. All four panellists have had their first crime novels published in recent years, but they were all very professional and this made for a lively discussion, even at 9 a.m., which is not my favourite time of the day. The audience was excellent, too

I hadn’t met Dan Waddell before, but found him a splendid panel colleague. He has written a couple of books which make use of his knowledge of genealogy, and oddly enough there was a time (probably about 15 years ago) when I did some research with a view to writing a genealogical mystery myself. But I gave up on the idea, and I have no doubt that Dan is much better suited to it than I would have been.

I was asked to reprise the Forgotten Authors panel, which was popular last year, although with a different group of authors. I’d been on panels previously with Caro Ramsay, Caroline Todd and Suzette Hill, but this was my first encounter with Stan Trollip, who is one half of the South African double act known as Michael Stanley.

We talked about a wide range of authors, ranging from John Buchan to James McClure. Caro amused me with her theory that Desmond Bagley and Duncan Kyle were one and the same person, and it has to be said that their photos do bear an uncanny resemblance to each other. A fun panel, and the only problem was that there was so much to say about the chosen authors that 50 minutes simply was not enough.

Crimefest 2010

I returned yesterday afternoon from a thoroughly enjoyable trip to Bristol, and I think everyone shared the view that Crimefest 2010 was a highly successful event. Congratulations are due to the hard-working team of volunteers who make sure that things go so smoothly, a tricky task accomplished with good humour and efficiency.

The superb weather was an added bonus and I took the opportunity to have a look round some parts of Bristol within walking distance. It's a rather appealing city, and one that, surprisingly, has not been featured too often in crime fiction.

Right from the outset I also had the chance to catch up with a number of old friends - within minutes of arrival, I found myself in the company of first Ruth Dudley Edwards, Linda Regan and Brian Murphy, and then Ali Karim, Maxim Jakubowski and Neil White. And the social aspects of the convention continued throughout the week-end, right down to the journey home with Kate Ellis, who kindly presented me with a copy of her latest book, The Flesh Tailor, about which more at a future date..

On Friday evening, a pub meal at The Green House, conveniently located opposite the convention hotel, was followed by a quiz set by Peter Guttridge. Our team, the Monkey Coalition, ran out winners despite struggling with various questions, especially about film. It was a very convivial occasion, and my colleagues were Rik and Carol Shepherd, Karen Meek, Ann Cleeves and Cath Staincliffe. Our prizes were a choice of books, cds and dvds, and I’m hoping that audio versions of books by Peter Robinson and Lee Child will improve my commutes in the weeks to come.

Crimefest

Today I set off for Bristol, and Crimefest. I’ve been looking forward to it, whilst worrying for some time that family health issues would prevent me from attending. Happily, this is not the case, and I am hoping that I’ll find the week-end as restorative as I have done on previous occasions.

I’m moderating a couple of panels. ‘I Fought the Law’ on Friday morning concerns writers who write fact and fiction, and those involved include Frances Brody, Alison Bruce, Dan Waddell and Diane Janes.

On Sunday morning, we will reprise the ‘Forgotten Authors’ panel that proved popular last year. Those involved include Caro Ramsay, Michael Stanley, Caroline Todd and Suzette Hill.

Shortly after that, I’ll be involved again with the Mastermind quiz. All in all, it should really be a fun week-end and I do hope to see some of you there