Father Brown Mysteries - "The Curse Of The Golden Cross" (10-26-86)

INTRO: Bob Plays Paul Anka - Paul Anka Sings "The Times Of Your Life"
Father Brown Mysteries - The Curse Of The Golden Cross (10-26-86)

The Curse Of The Golden Cross (Aired October 26, 1986

The first Father Brown story was published in 1910 in the Saturday Evening Post, years before Chesterton had even converted to Roman Catholicism. Forty-eight Father Brown stories were published before Chesterton’s death, and for many, the unassuming Catholic priest, who solved mysteries through close observation and intuition, remains the model clerical detective, unmatched by any subsequent efforts by other authors. Not that these authors haven’t tried. Their success depends on the same factors by which we judge any piece of fiction in general and mystery fiction in particular: is the writing evocative or flat and cliched? Are the characters three-dimensional, or are they just types who do little but lie flat on the page? Do the situations in the narrative arise organically and naturally, or are they obvious constructs? And what does the religious identity of the detective add to the story? Is it relevant to the tale, or is it merely a gimmick in a narrative that could it have just as well have been told with a gas station attendant searching for clues instead? Father Brown was a natural for radio and he has appeared in several series on both sides of the Atlantic, most notably The Father Brown Stories which were originally broadcast on BBC Radio 4 between 1984 and 1987. They starred Andrew Sachs as Father Brown and Olivier Pierre as Monsieur Flambeau.