The Sullivan Mystery from 1947 was the first to feature Vivian Ellis’ famous Coronation Scot as the main theme to Paul Temple on radio (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CT7kbyVF-qE). It is also one of the most fun shows in the series, and this wonderful BBC-4 recreation is splendid in every way!

The plot to The Sullivan Mystery is wildly implausible, but can’t mar your enjoyment of Paul and Steve heading to an exotic location, with mystery and danger hot on their heels. It’s a world of a different era, one of cocktails and sports cars, sophisticated parties mingling with intrigue and danger. For mystery lovers, a better world it is. As I mentioned in my review of Paul Temple and Steve, think of Paul Temple and his Fleet Street journalist wife as television’s Jonathan and Jennifer Hart, moved across the pond and back in time a few decades, and you’ll have a bead on the ambiance already.

Crawford Logan and Gerda Stevenson once again portray the sophisticated couple prone to attract danger in this incredibly enjoyable production of the original show as it was broadcast on the BBC. Again, it’s a Patrick Rayner production, and it sparkles from the outset as Paul and Steve are preparing for an exciting trip to Cairo, Egypt. Joyce Harwood interrupts the packing and banter between the couple when she asks Paul a favor. A rather innocuous favor — to deliver a pair of spectacles to her cousin, Richard Sullivan, who has left them behind. Since the Temples are headed to that side of the world, why not?

Oh, boy! What is with the peepers? Everyone seems to want them, with some offering great sums of money, others offering something much more dangerous. It begins to appear as though several groups may be working independently of one another to get the glasses. First the woman claiming to be Joyce Harwood is found murdered after a room mix-up, a peppermint the only clue to the killer’s identity. Then someone tries to do away with Paul and Steve while they go for a sail at one of the exotic stops on their way to Cairo. Because these were the romantic days of travel, there are several legs to the journey, including a stop in Sicily, exotic cafés and swanky nightclubs, the Nile River, the Villa Negara and Hotel Karamet. And of course there’s a luxurious flying boat the Temples travel aboard at one point.

Because Paul has had Sir Graham check out the glasses through British Intelligence, he knows there is nothing special about them at all. This makes all the intrigue even more puzzling — but no less dangerous, as bodies seem to pile up on each leg of the journey until it becomes difficult to keep track of all the players. Constantine, Colonel Marquand, Harold Darwin, and Quinn are just a few who may be after something. But who is in league with whom? And is there actually a flesh and blood Richard Sullivan?

A strangled woman in the water, an antiques dealer’s business card, a sabotaged car, one man stabbed and another shot while standing on the Temple’s hotel balcony, and finally a kidnapping, make up a breezy and wonderfully fun mystery that sweeps us along with Paul and Steve on a quite adventurous vacation. It’s no wonder that the first of the eight episodes — there are two on each of the four discs — is titled Having a Wonderful Time, and the final episode is titled Still Having a Wonderful Time. That could easily describe the experience for the listener as well!

This is simply fabulous, and I can’t recommend it highly enough. If you would prefer to read it — I’ve done both — its print title is East of Algiers, and it’s great fun also. Perhaps because it was originally a radio mystery, it may be even more enjoyable in that medium’s form, thanks to the attention to production detail and the excellent cast — most notably of course, Crawford Logan and Gerda Stevenson. The Sullivan Mystery is chic mystery fun that can’t be beat. Take a break from Christie and Sayers, who’ve been done ad nauseam, and tag along with Francis Durbridge’s iconic couple, Paul Temple and Steve! ( )