Julius Green

From the producer of numerous Agatha Christie stage plays comes the first book to examine the world’s bestselling mystery writer’s career and work as a playwright, published to commemorate her 125th birthday. Agatha Christie has long been revered around the world for her mysteries and the indelible characters she created, Miss Jane Marple and Hercule Poirot. In addition to her contributions as a novelist, this gifted writer was also an acclaimed playwright. Offering a unique, in-depth look at her work for the stage, Curtain Up analyzes her plays and features excerpts from Agatha Christie’s correspondences, notebooks, and several unpublished and unperformed scripts quoted from for the first time. Meticulously researched, peppered with groundbreaking discoveries—including a details discussion of her only play to premiere in America—Curtain Up sheds new light on Christie’s artistry and adds a fascinating layer to her remarkable story.

Agatha Christie: A Life in the Theatre

Curtain Up

Chris Andrew

A hugely entertaining and original history of the interplay between spying and showbiz, featuring Marlowe and Shakespeare, but focusing mostly on the twentieth century, the golden era of the Cold War and up to the present day. Throughout history, the crossover between thespians and secret agents has waxed and waned, often producing some of the most extraordinary undercover agents, and at others leading to disastrous and dangerous failures. The fact that one relies on publicity and the other on secrecy might at first appear to dictate against a successful symbiosis; however, as both involve advanced abilities in creative thinking, improvisation, disguise and role-play, they inevitably attract some remarkably similar personalities. In this unique history of the interplay between the two worlds, we travel back to Elizabethan England and the works of playwright-come-spy Christopher Marlowe and to the Restoration era to encounter the first female playwright and first female spy Aphra Behn. We visit civil war America and turn of the century Paris to reveal a whole undercurrent of female spy roles as seducers and as efficient and vital agents, as well as inventing a string of exotic myths. And as the story moves through the twentieth century and the role of spying in geopolitical affairs becomes more central and more dark and dangerous, showbiz provides essential cover for people to gather information, hiding in plain sight, including an astonishing array of famous writers and producers who were drafted into the spying business during wartime, from Maugham, Coward, Fleming, Korda and Graham Greene. Over the course of the century, spying becomes ever more mainstream in popular culture, both in the James Bond adventures, in the spy thrillers of le Carré and Deighton and recently in long-running TV series such as The Americans. Written by two experts in their fields with unrivalled access to the papers of key players and agencies, Stars and Spies is a unique examination of the historic links between espionage and show business.

Stars and Spies

Christopher Andrew

A vastly entertaining and unique history of the interaction between spying and showbiz, from the Elizabethan age to the Cold War and beyond. Throughout history, there has been a consistent crossover between show business and espionage, often producing some of the most extraordinary undercover agents, and occasionallyleading to disastrous and dangerous failures. The fact that one relies on publicity and the other on secrecy might seem to rule out a successful symbiosis; but as both require high levels of creative thinking, improvisation, disguise and role-play, they inevitably attract some remarkably similar personalities. Stars and Spies is the first history of the interplay between the two worlds. We travel back to the golden age of theatre and intelligence in the reign of Elizabeth I, where we meet the playwright and spy Christopher Marlowe. In the Restoration we encounter in Aphra Behn the first professional female playwright and the first female spy to work for the British government. We visit Civil War America, Tsarist Russia and fin de siècle Paris where some writers, actors and entertainers become efficient and vital agents, while others are put under surveillance by the burgeoning intelligence services. And as the story moves through the twentieth century and beyond, and the role of spying in word affairs becomes more central, showbiz provides essential cover for agents to gather information while hiding in plain sight. The astonishing array of those who were drafted into the intelligence services includes Somerset Maugham, Graham Greene, Noel Coward and Alexander Korda. At the same time, spying enters mainstream popular culture, from the adventures of James Bond to the thrillers of John le Carré and long-running TV series such as The Americans. Written by two experts in their fields - Christopher Andrew, arguably the world's leading intelligence historian, and theatre producer and entertainment historian Julius Green - Stars and Spies is a unique and highly entertaining examination of the fascinating links between the intelligence services and show business.

Intelligence Operations and the Entertainment Business

Harpercollins Uk

A revealing and witty new examination of how Agatha Christie became the world's most successful and popular female playwright, including details of never-before-published scripts and stories.

Agatha Christie: a Life in Theatre: Curtain Up

Revised and updated edition: Coming November 2014 How to Produce A West End Show demystifies the working world of live theatre. This is an insider account that maps an entry route into the industry and examines the challenges faced by West End producers. • How to budget and finance a show • How to assemble a cast and creative team • How to work with writers, directors and designers • How to book a West End theatre and a pre-West End tour • How to advertise and market your show Julius Green shares the experience he’s gained as one of the UK’s most prolific theatre producers to illuminate the glamorous, gritty process of putting on a West End show. A compelling read for anyone who works in or is interested in the theatre.

How to Produce a West End Show

Wolf and Dennis are private investigators. Wolf in particular is going to pursue his goal of cleaning out the city of gangsters, after he is framed for something he didn't do, finding out the corruption in the city. The novel is really short, with 13,000 words, but I promise you'll never get bored, as something is always happening.

Rogue Justice

The journey continues. Politics begins as the nations such as the Western Republic begin a war of aggression against their neighbours. Martin begins a journey to the south, and scheming by nations begins. Who will rule and what will change? The sequel to Coppers Journey continues the tale of blood and heroism.

Julius Green

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