This novelisation of the radio serial Paul Temple and the Jonathan Mystery also includes a Paul Temple short story, 'The Ventriloquist's Doll'. Photographer and amateur detective Philip Holt is asked to investigate the unexplained murder of an American student at an English university. With a postcard signed 'Christopher' and the boy's father's missing signet ring as his only leads, Holt's investigation soon snowballs into forgery, blackmail, smuggling ... and more murder. Dead to the World is Francis Durbridge's novelisation of his radio serial Paul Temple and the Jonathan Mystery, rewriting the Paul and Steve Temple characters as Philip Holt and his secretary Ruth Sanders. This new edition is introduced by bibliographer Melvyn Barnes and includes the Paul Temple Christmas story THE VENTRILOQUIST'S DOLL.

This novelisation of the radio serial Paul Temple and the Gilbert Case also includes a bonus short story, 'Paul Temple and the Nightingale'. It was an open-and-shut case: Lucy Staines was murdered by her hot-headed fiance Harold Weldon. But something about it is troubling ex-Fleet Street crime reporter Mike Baxter - why was one of Lucy's shoes missing from the crime scene? When an identical murder occurs while Weldon is safely behind bars, the whole case is re-opened - and everything revolves around another woman's shoes... Another Woman's Shoes is Francis Durbridge's rewrite of his radio serial Paul Temple and the Gilbert Case, in which Mike and Linda Baxter take the places of Paul and Steve Temple in pursuing the killer. This new edition is introduced by bibliographer Melvyn Barnes and includes the short story PAUL TEMPLE AND THE NIGHTINGALE.

Never published in paperback, and back in print for the first time since 1950, Back Room Girl was the first original novel by Francis Durbridge. Retiring to No Man's Cove in Cornwall to write his memoirs, crime reporter Roy Benton discovers that a disused tin mine has become a research station for a secret weapons project. Karen Silvers, in charge of operations, reluctantly accepts that Benton's experience could help her fight a sinister organisation intent on stealing their plans. Having adapted five of his Paul Temple radio serials into successful novelisations, in 1950 Francis Durbridge decided to try his hand at writing his first original novel. Back Room Girl bore all the hallmarks of the famous Paul Temple stories, an outlandish mixture of mystery, glamour and suspense, in a book that was never reprinted and so became an enigma to his many fans - until now. Includes an introduction by bibliographer Melvyn Barnes plus two rare short stories written for Christmas annuals: LIGHT-FINGERS and A PRESENT FROM PAUL TEMPLE.

Never before published in paperback, and back in print for the first time since 1951, this long-lost novelisation reworks the nail-biting radio serial 'Paul Temple and the Gregory Affair' with new and original characters. The Assistant Commissioner of Scotland Yard visits retired Detective Lionel Wyatt with the chilling news that an old adversary they never caught has struck again, strangling an innocent girl. Wyatt is reluctant to return to police work, but then another body is found - this time at his own home, with a personal message: 'With the compliments of Mr Rossiter'. In Design for Murder, Francis Durbridge adapted his longest Paul Temple serial, Paul Temple and the Gregory Affair, into a full-length novel. All the obligatory elements from the thrilling radio episodes were present, but in a new twist, he renamed the principal characters: Paul and Steve Temple became Lionel and Sally Wyatt, and 'Mr Rossiter' replaced the villainous Gregory. Reprinted for the first time in 66 years, fans of Francis Durbridge and of Paul Temple can finally relive this ingenious adventure. Also includes an introduction by bibliographer Melvyn Barnes plus the exclusive 1946 Radio Times short story 'Paul Temple's White Christmas'.

Republished for the first time since 1951, Beware of Johnny Washington is Francis Durbridge’s clever reworking of the very first Paul Temple radio serial using his new characters, the amiable Johnny Washington and newspaper columnist Verity Glyn. Includes as a bonus the first Paul Temple short story, ‘A Present for Paul’. When a gang of desperate criminals begins leaving calling cards inscribed ‘With the Compliments of Johnny Washington’, the real Johnny Washington is encouraged by an attractive newspaper columnist to throw in his lot with the police. Johnny, an American ‘gentleman of leisure’ who has settled at a quiet country house in Kent to enjoy the fishing, soon finds himself involved with the mysterious Horatio Quince, a retired schoolmaster who is on the trail of the gang’s unscrupulous leader, the elusive ‘Grey Moose’. Best known for creating Paul Temple for BBC radio in 1938, Francis Durbridge’s prolific output of crime and mystery stories, encompassing plays, radio, television, films and books, made him a household name for more than 50 years. A new radio character, ‘Johnny Washington, Esquire’, hit the airwaves in 1949, leading to the publication of this one-off novel in 1951. This Detective Club classic is introduced by writer and bibliographer Melvyn Barnes, author of Francis Durbridge: A Centenary Appreciation, who reveals how Johnny Washington’s only literary outing was actually a reworking of Durbridge’s own Send for Paul Temple.