And also, is it because of the many not so favourable reactions to this undertaking on this forum that there is no more visible activity from administrators or Matthew Pritchard himself??
It may not be public knowledge yet, but Mathew (now 72) is taking a back seat from the end of this month and his son James will be taking over as Chairman. So as from November there will be a lot of changes (new aspects) to how Agatha Christie is promoted. I spent some time talking with James at the festival in September and he seems quite enthusiastic about the future of Agatha Christie Ltd. We, the fans, will have to wait and see how it transforms, will we like it, I'm sure there will be some who won't, but change is inevitable.
HarperCollins and Agatha Christie Ltd certainly feel that they have, as you want to put it, cast iron figures that The Monogram Murders have introduced new readers to Agatha Christie own novels. Speaking to fans that attended the festival in September, I would endorse their findings. There were quite a few that had gone on to read Poirot books. As for supporting the activities that Agatha Christie Ltd do to promote her works, if expands the fan base then I'm all for it. However, do I like the comic books of the novels, I'm certainly not rushing out to buy them. Did I like the BBC adaptation of The Secrete Adversary and N or M, they were entertaining and a good watch, but I'm not buying the CD. On the subject of a true fan, I'm stunned to hear anyone saying that they hate their favourite authors books, I would put it as I like some more than others. My interest in the written word, that's what I got my PhD in, so I leave the review of the films to others. With Christmas approaching we have the BBC adaptation of And Then There Were None to look forward to. Even before it's out I think it will be fabulous.
I also think so. Shana wrote a lot reasonable things. And I also think that you can be a fan of someone's work and not be very fond of one or other book. Being a fan doesn't mean that you will love everything, you can have criticisms and still love the work (in general) and respect A.C as the great author that she was/is.
Dr Sheppard Harper Collins and Agatha Christie Ltd would think that wouldn't they? They have to believe in the Book and that it did what it was supposed to do, as for being stunned to hear me say I hate some of the books, for one thing it is a very tiny number of the books b, I think I can count them on one hand and for another thing you can hate what a relative does and still love the Relative can't you, It is the same sought of thing, Finally I have not read the Comic books and might hate what The estate sanction but I might just like some of the things and will always love the Vast majority of the Books and Adaptations.
Just a small point, HarperCollins don't have to think about the success of The Monogram Murders, they have facts about the actual books sold. Speaking to David Brawn, Publishing Director for Estates, at HarperCollins, they have been delighted with the book sales, in the UK and around the world.
But sales don't necessarily tell The Publisher if those buying the book enjoyed it and people might well but Agatha Christie Books after reading Sophie Hannah's book but they might do so to see if the Book is a patch on The Christie Books and if they for some unexplainable reason prefer Sophie Hannah's Book they might decide Agatha Christie's Books are not for them
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And I also think that you can be a fan of someone's work and not be very fond of one or other book. Being a fan doesn't mean that you will love everything, you can have criticisms and still love the work (in general) and respect A.C as the great author that she was/is.