Beatrice Adela Bradley is a fictional detective created by Gladys Mitchell. Mrs (later Dame Beatrice) Bradley is Mitchell's most significant and long-lived character, appearing in 66 novels that were published between 1929 and 1975.[1]

Mrs Bradley
First appearanceSpeedy Death
Created byGladys Mitchell
Portrayed byMary Wimbush and Margaret Yarde (BBC Radio)
Diana Rigg (TV)
In-universe information
GenderFemale
TitleMrs, later Dame
OccupationPsychiatrist
SpouseMr Lestrange (first husband; deceased)
Unnamed second husband (deceased)
Mr Bradley (third husband; deceased)
ChildrenSir Ferdinand Lestrange (son)
Unnamed second son by her second husband
RelativesDerek Lestrange (grandson)
Sally Lestrange (granddaughter)
Juliet Lestrange (ex-daughter-in-law)
Caroline Lestrange (daughter-in-law)
NationalityBritish

Life

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Mrs Bradley is the first female character to be both a detective heroine and a member of an 'established profession'.[2] A fully qualified medical doctor and a psychoanalyst, she is a consultant for the Home Office, and she also acts as an amateur detective.[2]

Mrs Bradley lives in the village of Wandles Parva, located in the New Forest. Her sidekicks include her chauffeur George Cuddleup, and her secretary Laura Menzies.

Books

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The last-named is a collection of all but one of Gladys Mitchell's short stories from 1938 to 1956, many previously uncollected; edited and with a comprehensive introduction by Nicholas Fuller.

Portrayals

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Mrs Bradley was portrayed by Diana Rigg in the television series The Mrs Bradley Mysteries, and on radio by Margaret Yarde[3] and Mary Wimbush.

References

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  1. ^ Rosemary., Herbert (2003-01-01). Whodunit? : a who's who in crime & mystery writing. Oxford University Press. pp. 22. ISBN 0195157613. OCLC 252700230.
  2. ^ a b Bright, Brittain (2015). Beyond the Scene of the Crime: Investigating Place in Golden Age Detective Fiction. PhD thesis (Goldsmiths, University of London). pp. 34, 127, 142.
  3. ^ "BBC Home Service Basic - 28 September 1940 - BBC Genome".