The Detection Club was formed in 1930 by a group of British mystery writers, including Agatha Christie, Dorothy L Sayers, Ronald Knox, Freeman Wills Crofts, Arthur Morrison, John Rhode, Jessie Rickard, Baroness Emma Orczy, R Austin Freeman, G D H Cole, Margaret Cole, E C Bentley, Henry Wade, and H C Bailey. Anthony Berkeley was instrumental in setting up the club, and the first president was G K Chesterton. There was a fanciful initiation ritual, with an oath probably written by either G K Chesterton or Dorothy L Sayers, and the club held regular dinner meetings in London. Read More on wikipedia.
The Detection Club, sometimes referred to as the London Detection Club, was founded by Anthony Berkeley in 1928. The chair was occupied first by G K Chesterton and then by E C Bentley. Formal record-keeping began in 1930. John Dickson Carr was one of the Club's most active members. The Club occasionally publishes joint works to raise money; these are listed here. The members of the club, with their date of joining, are shown here. It can be seen that by 1958 membership of the Club was no longer a guarantee of Golden Age status or of publishing success, and that arguably the last Golden Ager to (belatedly) join the Club was Ngaio Marsh in 1974. Read More on gadetection.
The Oath (excerpt):
Do you promise that your detectives shall well and truly detect the crimes presented to them using those wits which it may please you to bestow upon them and not placing reliance on nor making use of Divine Revelation, Feminine Intuition, Mumbo Jumbo, Jiggery-Pokery, Coincidence, or Act of God?
Read More on elegsabiff.com.
Read More on elegsabiff.com.
“The Detection Club is a private association of writers of detective fiction in Great Britain, existing chiefly for the purpose of eating dinners together at suitable intervals and of talking illimitable shop … Its membership is confined to those who have written genuine detective stories (not adventure tales or ‘thrillers’) and election is secured by a vote of the club on recommendation by two or more members, and involves the undertaking of an oath.” Dorothy L. Sayers
There are American members as well, the first being John Dickson Carr elected in 1936, though he was then living in the U.K.
The Detection Club continues to exist.
List Of Publications:
- The Scoop And Behind The Screen (1931)
- The Floating Admiral (1931,1932)
- Ask A Policeman (1933)
- The Anatomy Of A Murder (1936) (US title: The Anatomy Of Murder (1937)) (Published by Macmillan, New York.)
- Six Against The Yard (1936) (US title: Six Against Scotland Yard (1936)) (Though not sponsored by The Detection Club, all but one of the authors were club members.)
- Double Death: An Exercise In Detection aka Double Death: A Murder Story (1939) (Though not sponsored by The Detection Club, two of the authors were club members.)
- Detection Medley (1939) (US title: Line-Up (1940)) (Short stories, some original, some reprints.)
- Mystery Playhouse Presents The Detection Club (January 1948) (Six 30-minute radio-plays by club members on BBC Home Service written in aid of club funds.)
- No Flowers By Request (1953)
- Crime On The Coast (1954) (A round-robin novel, but not sponsored by The Detection Club.)
- Verdict Of Thirteen (1978) (Original short stories, edited by Julian Symons.)
- The Man Who... (1992) (An anthology of original crime stories commissioned by The Detection Club in celebration of Julian Symons' 80th birthday, edited by H R F Keating.)
- The Detection Collection (2005) (Original short stories in recognition of The Detection Club's 75th anniversary, edited by Simon Brett.)
- The Verdict Of Us All (2006) (Original short stories in honor of H R F Keating's 80th birthday, edited by Peter Lovesey.)
List Of Presidents:
- G K Chesterton (1930-1936)
- E C Bentley (1936-1949)
- Dorothy L Sayers (1949-1957)
- Agatha Christie (1957-1976)
- *Lord Gorell (Ronald Gorell Barnes, 3rd Baron Gorell) (1957-1963)
- Julian Symons (1976-1985)
- H R F Keating (1985-2000)
- Simon Brett (2000–present)
*Lord Gorell shared the presidency with Agatha Christie, who only agreed to accept the role if a co-president was appointed to conduct The Detection Club's proceedings.
List Of Club Members: (past and present, with their joining dates on gadetection)
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