Agatha Christie's Miss Marple: A Pocket Full of Rye (1985)

When a handful of grain is found in the pocket of a murdered businessman, Miss Marple seeks a murderer with a penchant for nursery rhymes.

Director:

Guy Slater

Writers:

Agatha Christie (novel), T.R. Bowen (screenplay)

Stars:

Joan Hickson, Timothy West, Fabia Drake

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Joan Hickson	...	Miss Jane Marple
Timothy West	...	Rex Fortescue
Fabia Drake	...	Miss Henderson
Clive Merrison	...	Percival Fortescue
Rachel Bell	...	Jennifer Fortescue
Peter Davison	...	Lance Fortescue
Frances Low	...	Patricia Fortescue
Stacy Dorning	...	Adele Fortescue
Martyn Stanbridge	...	Vivian Dubois
Tom Wilkinson	...	Detective Inspector Neele
Jon Glover	...	Detective Sergeant Hay
Selina Cadell	...	Mary Dove
Annette Badland	...	Gladys Martin
Merelina Kendall	...	Mrs. Crump
Frank Mills	...	Mr. Crump

Storyline

Wealthy business man Rex Fortescue collapses when he reaches his office. It is determined that he was poisoned. No one seems too upset, as everyone agrees that Rex was a tyrant. Soon however Rex's young wife also turns up poisoned. The maid, Gladyes, whom Miss Marple trained, writes to Miss Marple asking for help. Miss Marple arrives too late, as Gladyses' body is found strangled and strung up on the clothes line. Now it's personal, and Miss Marple is determined to see the murderer punished.

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Plot Keywords:

miss marple | tv mini series | poison | murder | detective | 

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Genres:

Crime | Drama | Mystery

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Details

Country:

UK USA Australia

Language:

English

Release Date:

8 November 1987 (Sweden)

Also Known As:

Agatha Christie's Miss Marple: A Pocket Full of Rye

Filming Locations:

Thelveton Hall, Diss, Norfolk, England, UK

Company Credits

Production Co:

7 Network, A&E Television Networks, British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

103 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Timothy West plays Rex Fortescue in this version while his wife Prunella Scales would later play Miss Effie Ramsbottom in the ITV adaptation Agatha Christie's Marple: A Pocket Full of Rye (2008).

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Goofs

Just after Lance's car is spotted by the police, he drives past a modern (post-1964) speed limit sign.

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Connections

Followed by Miss Marple: The Mirror Crack'd from Side to Side (1992)

User Reviews

Good movie lots of suspects.

I liked this "Pocket Full of Rye" with Joan Hickson as Miss Marple. I have seen the one with Geraldine McEwen which I think is a great Miss Marple but the movies are put together different and I liked this one better.

One actor who I like is Peter Davison, at first I did not recognize him. Peter plays Lance son of the father that is rich and is murdered. This is a 1985 movie and Peter Davison plays in "The Last Detective" a series on British TV in which he is a detective and also plays in a series called "Campion".

As in most Agatha Christies stories there are a lot of knots to tie to find out who the killer or killer are. This is one of those movies.

I enjoyed it.