Marple: At Bertram's Hotel (TV 2007)

Miss Marple spends a holiday in a luxurious London hotel. The sinister atmosphere, the odd disappearance of a clergyman and the murder of the commissionaire moves her on the trail of a clever criminal gang.

Director:

Dan Zeff

Writers:

Agatha Christie (novel), Tom MacRae (screenplay)

Stars:

Geraldine McEwan, Isabella Parriss, James Howard

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Geraldine McEwan	...	Miss Marple
Isabella Parriss	...	Young Miss Marple
James Howard	...	Hotel Doorman 1891
Adam Smethurst	...	Cab Driver
Tony Bignell	...	Newsboy
Vincent Regan	...	Mickey Gorman
Mark Heap	...	Mr. Humfries
Emily Beecham	...	Elvira Blake
Mary Nighy	...	Brigit Milford
Martine McCutcheon	...	Jane Cooper
Charles Kay	...	Canon Pennyfather
Ed Stoppard	...	Malinowski
Nicholas Burns	...	Jack Britten / Joel Britten
Mica Paris	...	Amelia Walker
Francesca Annis	...	Lady Selina Hazy

Storyline

Miss Marple finds herself on a bit of a holiday and staying at the very posh Bertram's Hotel, where she stayed as a child and for which she has very fond memories. Things take a sinister turn when a hotel maid, Tilly Rice, is found strangled on the roof. Miss Marple can't help but investigate but is assisted by Jane Cooper, also a hotel maid, who is in fact a younger version of Miss Marple. When an attempt is made on the life of a hotel guest, Elvira Blake the two Janes work together to find the motive and the identity of the killer.

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Plot Keywords:

hotel | maid | reference to rembrandt | murder mystery | multiple storyline | 

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Genres:

Crime | Drama | Mystery

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Details

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

23 September 2007 (UK)

Also Known As:

Miss Marple: At Bertram's Hotel

Filming Locations:

Claremont Fan Court School, Esher, Surrey, England, UK

Company Credits

Production Co:

Agatha Christie, Granada Television, ITV Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

84 min

Color:

Color

Did You Know?

Trivia

In the opening minutes, as Miss Marple stares in wonderment at the lobby of Bertram's Hotel, the manager is on the phone and says, "Uh, no, I'm afraid Miss Otis regrets she's unable to lunch today." The line is from the 1934 Cole Porter song "Miss Otis Regrets" performed by many artists including Ella Fitzgerald and 'Nat 'King' Cole', and more recently by Bette Midler on the final episode of The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson.

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Goofs

When Elvira Blake and Brigit Milford enter the dining room and talk to Miss Marple, Brigit is in front. When the scene cuts back to them a second later, Elvira's shoulder is in front of Brigit's. The cut is too quick for their positions to change.

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Quotes

Inspector Larry Bird: [during questioning] But the real reason for your stay is to design hats?
Mutti: Ja. In Berlin now, there is no hat industry. But then, in Berlin now, there is no hats. And no industry.

User Reviews

Agreed about audio; and Geraldine McEwan is miscast

Frankly, i think Joan Hickson established the standard for Miss Marple in the 1980s and early 90s. If I remember correctly, she was actually portraying a character younger than herself. (She played Marple into her mid-80s.) She did it wonderfully -- a great example of an actor coming into her own in later years.

Geraldine McEwan is an excellent actor, but she falls into the trap so many have playing Marple -- she plays it too lightly. Hickson took the role more seriously, gave it more gravity, and conveyed the essence of Miss Marple -- somewhat reclusive, quiet, wise observer. Miss Marple has an almost Buddhist quality. I have only seen Hickson capture that.

As for this episode another reviewer is right on the mark -- the audio mix is terrible. For some reason, British television productions chronically suffer from this problem (not always, but typically).

Here, the sound mix makes the program almost unwatchable, not simply because it drowns out everything else, but because the scoring is abysmally syrupy and overwrought.