Unlike some other reproductions of classic texts (1) We have not used OCR(Optical Character Recognition), as this leads to bad quality books with introduced typos. (2) In books where there are images such as portraits, maps, sketches etc We have endeavoured to keep the quality of these images, so they represent accurately the original artefact. Although occasionally there may be certain imperfections with these old texts, we feel they deserve to be made available for future generations to enjoy.

Unlike some other reproductions of classic texts (1) We have not used OCR(Optical Character Recognition), as this leads to bad quality books with introduced typos. (2) In books where there are images such as portraits, maps, sketches etc We have endeavoured to keep the quality of these images, so they represent accurately the original artefact. Although occasionally there may be certain imperfections with these old texts, we feel they deserve to be made available for future generations to enjoy.

Eight short plays: Triangle, Gladly Otherwise, The Black and White, Trouble in the Works, Cleaning Up Justice, Collector's Piece, Conference and Can You Hear Me?

The creator of the irrepressible barrister-sleuth, Rumpole of the Old Bailey, presents a superb collection of classic tales of mystery and suspense. With stories by such authors as P.D. James and Charles Dickens, Conan Doyle and Raymond Chandler, Edgar Allan Poe and John Mortimer himself, this anthology explores new dimensions in crime writing.

Zerah Colburn was a well-known nineteenth century locomotive engineer, journalist and publisher. In life he mixed with the famous men of engineering in America and Britain. Ans he was among 200 leading Americans nominated for New York University's Hall of Fame. But Colburn was an enigma, a dark and irascible man with a violent temper. His work colleagues in London called him the 'Spirit of Darkness'. But why did he shoot himself at the age of 38 at the height of his career?

There were days when the Father could see and days when the Father could not see in this tale seen through the eyes of the perennial Son as viewed from the trellis surrounded, as if for protection, by an enormous garden. The tale grows in turns and twists upon allusion and reversals, all crisply dramatic and really not so comical as at first glance.7 women, 12 men

A young man and woman meet in a wayside hotel during lunch hour to express their love. In order to be discreet, he has fabricated a story of marriage, children, distant home, to satisfy the concierge.The woman is confused when confronted with this fabrication, and as she unravels the matter in her mind the enchantment of love begins to fade. In brilliant dialogue by one of England's best writers.2 women, 1 man

A seedy lawyer has been waiting for years to make a grandstand defense. He is assigned to defend an innocuous little man accused of murdering his wife. The man cheerfully admits his guilt; he simply couldn't stand his wife's constant joking and laughing. The trial ends and the verdict is a foregone conclusion. The lawyer begs his client to let him appeal. Ironically the man is reprieved because of the ineptitude of his defense.2 men

Adapted by John Mortimer from the story by Charles Dickens Large cast. Simple sets. Dramatized with flair and wit in a version first performed by the Royal Shakespeare Company, this adaptation of the ageless story captures Dickens' ironic point of view while it creates a panoramic view of Victorian London. All of the much loved characters are in place. Cast and staging requirements are extremely flexible; there is ample opportunity for creative doubling.

Sir Fennimore Truscott, a retired Judge, sits under his mulberry tree and 'tries' his next-door-neighbour Tom Marjoriebanks for - allegedly - seducing Truscott's wife Margaret many years earlier.1 woman, 2 men

The translator of a popular version of Feydeau's A Flea in Her Ear scored another success with this acclaimed farce at the National Theatre of Great Britain. More slam bang experiences in mistaken identities and sexual peccadillos, this hilarious story begins with M. Pinglet's efforts to have a fling with Mme. Paillardin, who is terminally bored with her husband. The lovers book a room in a very out of the way hotel which quickly becomes a destination for practically everyone they know.Large cast

In a hospital housed in an old palazzo, two Englishmen recovering consciousness both see the ward ceiling, covered by a huge painting of Heaven, and imagine they have 'passed on'. In conversation it transpires that Fletcher, a rather rough type, has led the sort of Byronic life that scholarly Luby has only written about.2 women, 5 men

Collaborators is a comedy about marriage set in a dingy, infested flat in Belsize Park in the late 1950s. Henry Winter, a struggling young barrister, is also struggling to cultivate his writing career. At the invitation of Sam Brown, an American film producer of somewhat hazy credentials, he starts work on a film strip about marriage.2 women, 2 men

Francesca brings her lover, Henry, to her mother's flat to announce their intention to get married. While waiting for Mrs Stokes, Francesca answers a mysterious phone call. From what he overhears, Henry concludes that Mrs Stokes is a member of the oldest profession. It is later revealed that Mrs Stokes deals in nothing more erotic than antique furniture.2 women, 2 men

The characters in all four plays are in their twenties to forties and can either be played by the same four artists or by separate casts. The first, Mill Hill, calls for 2 men and 1 woman, the remainder, Bermondsey, Gloucester Road and Marble Arch, call for 2 men and 2 women each. These four plays are linked by their themes of sexual entanglements and by their central or suburban London settings.Large flexible cast

Raymonde suspects her husband, Victor Emmanuel, of infidelity and she turns to her best friend, Lucienne, to help her gain proof. They concoct a play-based on a perfumed letter-to trap him at the Hotel Coq d'Or in Montretout.5 women, 9 men

Like many other new technologies which have since been seized and exploited by others, the industrial robot is a British invention. In 1957, a patent was produced by a British inventor, Cyril Walter Kenward, and later it became crucial to the future of robotics. For across the Atlantic two robot builders, Unimation and AMF, both infringed this patent and ultimately a cash settlement was made to Kenward. The owner of Unimation Inc. was Joseph Engelberger, an entrepreneur and avid reader of Isaac Asimov, the writer who helped to create the image of the benevolent robot. It is claimed that Engelberger's journey of fame down the road which led to him being hailed as the 'father of robotics' can be traced to the day that he met George C. Devol at a cocktail party. Devol was an inventor with an impressive list of patents to his name in the electronics field. One of Devol's patent applications referred to a Programmed Transfer Article. Devol's patent was issued in 1961 as US Patent 2,988,237, and this formed the basis of the Unimate robot which first saw the light of day in 1960. The first Unimate was sold to Ford Motor Company which used it to tend a die-casting machine. It is perhaps ironic that the first robot was used by a company which refused to recognise the machine as a robot, preferring instead to call it a Universal Transfer Device.

Eccentric and hillarious, Georges Feydeau's much loved comedy mixes madness, mayhem, fun and frivolity. When the beautiful wife of Victor Chandebise suspects of having an affair, she enlists the help of her dearest friend to entrap him. Their plan to entice him to a rendezvous at the Hotel Coq D'or spectacularly misfires and chaos ensues. Set in the decadent surroundings of Belle Epoque Paris, Feydeau's quintessential farce promises to be an exhilerating even of mistaken identities and comic disaster.

'Rumpole, like Jeeves and Sherlock Holmes, is immortal' P. D. James Horace Rumpole - dishevelled barrister at law, drinker of claret and smoker of cigars, inveterate quoter of Wordsworth and eternal defender of the underdog - is one of the greatest English comic characters ever created. This is the original volume of Rumpole stories, introducing us to the legal triumphs that first made the Old Bailey Hack's name, along with a host of choice villains, frequent forays to Pommeroy's wine bar and, of course, his formidable, magisterial wife Hilda, She Who Must Be Obeyed. 'I thank heaven for small mercies. The first of these is Rumpole' Clive James 'A fruity, foxy masterpiece, defender of our wilting faith in mankind' Sunday Times