Albert Campion
Encyclopedia
Albert Campion is a fictional character
Fictional character
A character is the representation of a person in a narrative work of art . Derived from the ancient Greek word kharaktêr , the earliest use in English, in this sense, dates from the Restoration, although it became widely used after its appearance in Tom Jones in 1749. From this, the sense of...

 in a series of detective novels and short stories
Detective fiction
Detective fiction is a sub-genre of crime fiction and mystery fiction in which an investigator , either professional or amateur, investigates a crime, often murder.-In ancient literature:...

 by Margery Allingham
Margery Allingham
Margery Louise Allingham was an English crime writer, best remembered for her detective stories featuring gentleman sleuth Albert Campion.- Childhood and schooling :...

. He first appeared as a supporting character in The Crime at Black Dudley
The Crime at Black Dudley
The Crime at Black Dudley, also known in the United States as The Black Dudley Murder, is a crime novel by Margery Allingham, first published in 1929, in the United Kingdom by Jarrolds, London and in the United States by Doubleday Doran, New York...

(1929), an adventure story
Adventure novel
The adventure novel is a genre of novels that has adventure, an exciting undertaking involving risk and physical danger, as its main theme.-History:...

 involving a ring of criminals, and would go on to feature in another 17 novel
Novel
A novel is a book of long narrative in literary prose. The genre has historical roots both in the fields of the medieval and early modern romance and in the tradition of the novella. The latter supplied the present generic term in the late 18th century....

s and over 20 short stories
Short story
A short story is a work of fiction that is usually written in prose, often in narrative format. This format tends to be more pointed than longer works of fiction, such as novellas and novels. Short story definitions based on length differ somewhat, even among professional writers, in part because...

. Supposedly created as a parody of Dorothy L. Sayers
Dorothy L. Sayers
Dorothy Leigh Sayers was a renowned English crime writer, poet, playwright, essayist, translator and Christian humanist. She was also a student of classical and modern languages...

' detective Lord Peter Wimsey
Lord Peter Wimsey
Lord Peter Death Bredon Wimsey is a bon vivant amateur sleuth in a series of detective novels and short stories by Dorothy L. Sayers, in which he solves mysteries; usually, but not always, murders...

, Campion established his own identity, and matured and developed as the series progressed. After Allingham's death her husband Philip Youngman Carter completed her last Campion book and wrote two more before his own death.

Fictional biography

Albert Campion is a pseudonym
Pseudonym
A pseudonym is a name that a person assumes for a particular purpose and that differs from his or her original orthonym...

 used by a man who was born in 1900 into a prominent British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...

 aristocratic
Aristocracy
Aristocracy , is a form of government in which a few elite citizens rule. The term derives from the Greek aristokratia, meaning "rule of the best". In origin in Ancient Greece, it was conceived of as rule by the best qualified citizens, and contrasted with monarchy...

 family. Early novels hint that he was part of the royal family but this suggestion is dropped in later works. He was educated at Rugby School
Rugby School
Rugby School is a co-educational day and boarding school located in the town of Rugby, Warwickshire, England. It is one of the oldest independent schools in Britain.-History:...

 and the (fictitious) St. Ignatius' College, Cambridge
University of Cambridge
The University of Cambridge is a public research university located in Cambridge, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest university in both the United Kingdom and the English-speaking world , and the seventh-oldest globally...

 (according to a mini-biography included in Sweet Danger
Sweet Danger
Sweet Danger is a crime novel by Margery Allingham, first published in October 1933, in the United Kingdom by Heinemann, London and in the United States by Doubleday, New York as Kingdom of Death; later U.S. versions used the title The Fear Sign...

). Ingenious, resourceful and well-educated, in his 20s he assumed the name Campion and began a life as an adventurer and detective.

Characteristics

Campion is thin, blond, wears glasses, and is often described as affable, inoffensive and bland, with a deceptively blank and unintelligent expression. He is, nonetheless, a man of authority and action, and considers himself to be a helpful and comforting "Uncle Albert" to friends and those in need. In some stories, he lives in a flat
Apartment
An apartment or flat is a self-contained housing unit that occupies only part of a building...

 above a police station
Police station
A police station or station house is a building which serves to accommodate police officers and other members of staff. These buildings often contain offices and accommodation for personnel and vehicles, along with locker rooms, temporary holding cells and interview/interrogation rooms.- Facilities...

 at Number 17A, Bottle Street in Piccadilly
Piccadilly
Piccadilly is a major street in central London, running from Hyde Park Corner in the west to Piccadilly Circus in the east. It is completely within the city of Westminster. The street is part of the A4 road, London's second most important western artery. St...

, London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...

. In the early stories he has a pet jackdaw
Jackdaw
The Jackdaw , sometimes known as the Eurasian Jackdaw, European Jackdaw or Western Jackdaw, is a passerine bird in the crow family. Found across Europe, western Asia and North Africa, it is mostly sedentary, although northern and eastern populations migrate south in winter. Four subspecies are...

 called Autolycus
Autolycus
In Greek mythology, Autolycus was a son of Hermes and Chione. He was the husband of Neaera, or according to Homer, of Amphithea...

.

Names

The name "Campion" may have its origin in the Old French word for "champion". Another source says the name was suggested by Allingham's husband Philip Youngman Carter, and may allude to the Jesuit
Society of Jesus
The Society of Jesus is a Catholic male religious order that follows the teachings of the Catholic Church. The members are called Jesuits, and are also known colloquially as "God's Army" and as "The Company," these being references to founder Ignatius of Loyola's military background and a...

 martyr St. Edmund Campion
Edmund Campion
Saint Edmund Campion, S.J. was an English Roman Catholic martyr and Jesuit priest. While conducting an underground ministry in officially Protestant England, Campion was arrested by priest hunters. Convicted of high treason by a kangaroo court, he was hanged, drawn and quartered at Tyburn...

. Carter and St. Edmund Campion were both graduates of Christ's Hospital
Christ's Hospital
Christ's Hospital is an English coeducational independent day and boarding school with Royal Charter located in the Sussex countryside just south of Horsham in Horsham District, West Sussex, England...

 school. Campion's fictional college, St. Ignatius, supports the Edmund Campion connection, since St. Ignatius of Loyola
Ignatius of Loyola
Ignatius of Loyola was a Spanish knight from a Basque noble family, hermit, priest since 1537, and theologian, who founded the Society of Jesus and was its first Superior General. Ignatius emerged as a religious leader during the Counter-Reformation...

 was the founder of the Jesuits.

'Albert Campion' is revealed early on to be a pseudonym. In Mystery Mile, his true first name is said to be Rudolph, while his surname begins with a K. In The Fashion in Shrouds
The Fashion in Shrouds
The Fashion in Shrouds is a crime novel by Margery Allingham. It was originally published in 1938 in the United Kingdom by Heinemann, London and in the United States by Doubleday, New York. It is the tenth novel in the Albert Campion series....

he also mentions his first name being Rudolph but confides he changed it asking people to call him Albert as he didn't like the name Rudolph.

Campion has used many other names in the course of his career. "Mornington Dove" (although in the 1988 Avon edition (page 72) of "The Black Dudley Murder" he is called "Mornington Dodd") and "the Honourable Tootles Ash" are mentioned in The Crime at Black Dudley; "Christopher Twelvetrees" and "Orlando" are mentioned in Look to the Lady
Look to the Lady
Look to the Lady is a crime novel by Margery Allingham, first published January 1931, in the United Kingdom by Jarrolds Publishing, London, and in the United States by Doubleday, New York, as The Gyrth Chalice Mystery...

.

Family and background

Allingham makes various references to Campion's aristocratic background, and hints at a connection to royalty in several asides. A study of the books suggests his father was a Viscount, and was already dead at the start of the series. Campion's mother is mentioned several times and writes a letter in The Fashion in Shrouds, and Campion borrows a car from his older brother in Mystery Mile, but neither of them appear in person. His sister Valentine Ferris plays a central part in The Fashion in Shrouds; in that book, it is revealed that they are both estranged from most of their family. In Police at the Funeral
Police at the Funeral
Police at the Funeral is a crime novel by Margery Allingham, first published in October 1931, in the United Kingdom by Heinemann, London and in 1932 in the United States by Doubleday, New York...

, the venerable Caroline Faraday is aware of his true identity, and knows his grandmother Emily - she states at one point that the rest of his family blame Emily for encouraging Campion in his adventurous ways.

Associates

From Mystery Mile
Mystery Mile
Mystery Mile is a crime novel by Margery Allingham, first published in 1930, in the United Kingdom by Jarrolds Publishing, London, and in the United States by Doubleday, Doran, New York...

onwards, Campion is normally aided by his manservant
Valet
Valet and varlet are terms for male servants who serve as personal attendants to their employer.- Word origins :In the Middle Ages, the valet de chambre to a ruler was a prestigious appointment for young men...

, Magersfontein Lugg
Magersfontein Lugg
Magersfontein Lugg is a fictional character in the Albert Campion novels, written by Margery Allingham. Servant and factotum to Mr Campion, Lugg is a former burglar, with a gruff manner, who hinders Campion socially as much as he helps.- Appearances :...

, an uncouth, rough-and-tumble fellow who used to be a burglar. Campion is good friends with Inspector
Inspector
Inspector is both a police rank and an administrative position, both used in a number of contexts. However, it is not an equivalent rank in each police force.- Australia :...

 (later Superintendent) Stanislaus Oates of Scotland Yard
Scotland Yard
Scotland Yard is a metonym for the headquarters of the Metropolitan Police Service of London, UK. It derives from the location of the original Metropolitan Police headquarters at 4 Whitehall Place, which had a rear entrance on a street called Great Scotland Yard. The Scotland Yard entrance became...

, who is as by-the-book as Campion is unorthodox, and in later books with Oates's protege Inspector Charles Luke.

In wartime, Campion is involved in intelligence
Military intelligence
Military intelligence is a military discipline that exploits a number of information collection and analysis approaches to provide guidance and direction to commanders in support of their decisions....

 work and after the war he continues to have a connection to the secret services.

Campion also has many friends and allies, seemingly scattered all across London and the English countryside, often including professional criminals. In the short story The Meaning of the Act Campion explains to Oates that the secret of his success is to "take a drink with anyone, and pick your pals where you find 'em".

In Mystery Mile
Mystery Mile
Mystery Mile is a crime novel by Margery Allingham, first published in 1930, in the United Kingdom by Jarrolds Publishing, London, and in the United States by Doubleday, Doran, New York...

Campion is subtly shown to be in love with Biddy Paget, around whose home most of the story revolves; Campion is distraught when, at the end of the adventure, she marries an American, and his sadness at losing her is mentioned again in subsequent stories.

After a doomed passion for a married woman in Dancers in Mourning
Dancers in Mourning
Dancers in Mourning is a crime novel by Margery Allingham, first published in 1937, in the United Kingdom by Heinemann, London and in the United States by Doubleday Doran, New York; later U.S...

, Campion eventually marries Amanda Fitton, who first appears in Sweet Danger
Sweet Danger
Sweet Danger is a crime novel by Margery Allingham, first published in October 1933, in the United Kingdom by Heinemann, London and in the United States by Doubleday, New York as Kingdom of Death; later U.S. versions used the title The Fear Sign...

as a seventeen-year old and later becomes an aircraft engineer; they have a son, called Rupert. Her brother Hal recovers the family title of Earl of Pontisbright as a result of the adventures described in Sweet Danger and Amanda then becomes Lady Amanda, as the sister of an Earl.

Novels

  • The Crime at Black Dudley
    The Crime at Black Dudley
    The Crime at Black Dudley, also known in the United States as The Black Dudley Murder, is a crime novel by Margery Allingham, first published in 1929, in the United Kingdom by Jarrolds, London and in the United States by Doubleday Doran, New York...

    (1929) (U.S. title: The Black Dudley Murder)
  • Mystery Mile
    Mystery Mile
    Mystery Mile is a crime novel by Margery Allingham, first published in 1930, in the United Kingdom by Jarrolds Publishing, London, and in the United States by Doubleday, Doran, New York...

    (1930)
  • Look to the Lady
    Look to the Lady
    Look to the Lady is a crime novel by Margery Allingham, first published January 1931, in the United Kingdom by Jarrolds Publishing, London, and in the United States by Doubleday, New York, as The Gyrth Chalice Mystery...

    (1931) (U.S. title: The Gyrth Chalice Mystery)
  • Police at the Funeral
    Police at the Funeral
    Police at the Funeral is a crime novel by Margery Allingham, first published in October 1931, in the United Kingdom by Heinemann, London and in 1932 in the United States by Doubleday, New York...

    (1931)
  • Sweet Danger
    Sweet Danger
    Sweet Danger is a crime novel by Margery Allingham, first published in October 1933, in the United Kingdom by Heinemann, London and in the United States by Doubleday, New York as Kingdom of Death; later U.S. versions used the title The Fear Sign...

    (1933) (U.S. title: Kingdom of Death or The Fear Sign)
  • Death of a Ghost
    Death of a Ghost
    Death of a Ghost is a crime novel by Margery Allingham, first published in February 1934, in the United Kingdom by Heinemann, London and in the United States by Doubleday, New York...

    (1934)
  • Flowers for the Judge
    Flowers for the Judge
    Flowers for the Judge is a crime novel by Margery Allingham, first published in February 1936, in the United Kingdom by Heinemann, London, and in the United States by Doubleday, Doran, New York...

    (1936) (U.S. title: Legacy in Blood)
  • The Case of the Late Pig
    The Case of the Late Pig
    The Case of the Late Pig is a crime novel by Margery Allingham, first published 1937, by Hodder & Stoughton. It is the eighth novel featuring the mysterious Albert Campion and his butler/valet/bodyguard Magersfontein Lugg.-Plot summary:...

    (1937)
  • Dancers in Mourning
    Dancers in Mourning
    Dancers in Mourning is a crime novel by Margery Allingham, first published in 1937, in the United Kingdom by Heinemann, London and in the United States by Doubleday Doran, New York; later U.S...

    (1937) (U.S. title: Who Killed Chloe?)
  • The Fashion in Shrouds
    The Fashion in Shrouds
    The Fashion in Shrouds is a crime novel by Margery Allingham. It was originally published in 1938 in the United Kingdom by Heinemann, London and in the United States by Doubleday, New York. It is the tenth novel in the Albert Campion series....

    (1938)
  • Traitor's Purse
    Traitor's Purse
    Traitor's Purse is a crime novel written by Margery Allingham. It was originally published in 1941 in the United Kingdom by Heinemann, London and in the United States by Doubleday, New York as The Sabotage Murder Mystery...

    (1941) (U.S. title: The Sabotage Murder Mystery)
  • Coroner's Pidgin
    Coroner's Pidgin
    Coroner's Pidgin is a crime novel by Margery Allingham, first published in 1945, in the United Kingdom by William Heinemann, London and in the United States by Doubleday Doran, New York in 1941 as Pearls Before Swine...

    (1945) (U.S. title: Pearls Before Swine)
  • More Work for the Undertaker
    More Work for the Undertaker
    More Work for the Undertaker is a crime novel by Margery Allingham, first published in 1948, in the United Kingdom by William Heinemann, London and in the United States by Doubleday Doran, New York...

    (1948)
  • The Tiger in the Smoke
    The Tiger in the Smoke
    The Tiger in the Smoke is a crime novel by Margery Allingham, first published in 1952, in the United Kingdom by Chatto & Windus, London and in the United States by Doubleday Doran, New York. It is the fourteenth novel in the Albert Campion series....

    (1952)
  • The Beckoning Lady
    The Beckoning Lady
    The Beckoning Lady is a crime novel by Margery Allingham, first published in 1955, in the United Kingdom by Chatto & Windus, London and in the United States by Doubleday Doran, New York under the title The Estate of the Beckoning Lady. It is the fifteenth novel in the Albert Campion series.-Plot...

    (1955) (U.S. title: The Estate of the Beckoning Lady)
  • Hide My Eyes
    Hide My Eyes
    Hide My Eyes is a crime novel by Margery Allingham, first published in 1958, in the United Kingdom by Chatto & Windus, London. It was published in the U.S. under the titles Tether's End or Ten Were Missing. It is the sixteenth novel in the Albert Campion series.-Plot introduction:An old country...

    (1958) (U.S. title: Tether's End or Ten Were Missing)
  • The China Governess
    The China Governess
    The China Governess is a crime novel by Margery Allingham, first published in 1963, in the United Kingdom by Chatto & Windus, London. It is the seventeenth novel in the Albert Campion series.-Plot introduction:...

    (1962)
  • The Mind Readers
    The Mind Readers
    The Mind Readers is a crime novel by Margery Allingham, first published in 1965, in the United Kingdom by Chatto & Windus, London. It is the eighteenth novel in the Albert Campion series.-Plot introduction:...

    (1965)
  • Cargo of Eagles
    Cargo of Eagles
    Cargo of Eagles is a crime novel by Margery Allingham, first published in 1968, in the United Kingdom by Chatto & Windus, London. It was incomplete at her death in 1966 and completed by her husband Philip Youngman Carter...

    (1968) (completed posthumously by Philip Youngman Carter)
  • Mr. Campion's Farthing (1969) (by Philip Youngman Carter)
  • Mr. Campion's Falcon (1970) (U.S. title: Mr. Campion's Quarry) (by Philip Youngman Carter)

Short story collections

  • Mr. Campion and Others (1939, 1950)
  • The Allingham Case-Book (1969)
  • The Allingham Minibus (U.S. title: Mr. Campion's Lucky Day and Other Stories) (1973)
  • The Return of Mr. Campion (1989)

Campion (1959-1960)

Two stories were adapted by the BBC in 1959 and 1960, with Bernard Horsfall
Bernard Horsfall
Bernard Horsfall is a British actor.Horsfall was born in Bishop's Stortford, Hertfordshire. He has appeared in many television and film roles including: Guns at Batasi , On Her Majesty's Secret Service , Enemy at the Door , Gandhi , The Jewel in the Crown , The Hound of the Baskervilles Bernard...

 as Campion and Wally Patch
Wally Patch
Wally Patch was a British character actor, who had supporting roles in many films. He was born Walter Sidney Vinnicombe in Willesden, London on 26 September 1888...

 as Lugg. Each story was shown in 6 30-minute episodes. The 1959 adaptation of Dancers in Mourning also featured John Ruddock
John Ruddock
John Ruddock was a Peruvian-born British film and television actor.-Selected filmography:* Escape to Danger * The Way Ahead * Waltz Time * Pink String and Sealing Wax * Lisbon Story...

 as Oates, Denis Quilley
Denis Quilley
Denis Clifford Quilley OBE was an English theatre, television and film actor who was long associated with the Royal National Theatre....

 as Jimmy Sutane, Michael Gough
Michael Gough
Michael Gough was an English character actor who appeared in over 150 films. He is perhaps best known to international audiences for his roles in the Hammer Horror films from 1958, and for his recurring role as Alfred Pennyworth in all four movies of the Burton/Schumacher Batman franchise,...

 as Squire Mercer and Noel Howlett
Noel Howlett
Noel Howlett was an English actor, principally remembered as the incompetent headmaster, Morris Cromwell, in the ITV 1970s cult television programme Please Sir!...

 as "Uncle" William Faraday. The 1960 adaptation, Death of a Ghost, featured Arthur Brough
Arthur Brough
Arthur Brough was a British actor, best known for portraying the character of senior menswear salesman Mr...

 as Oates.

Campion (1968)

In 1968 The Case of the Late Pig was adapted for television starring Brian Smith as Campion, and George Sewell
George Sewell
George Sewell was an English actor.-Early life and early career:The son of a Hoxton printer and a florist; Sewell left school at age 14 and worked briefly in the printing trade before switching to building work, specifically the repair of bomb-damaged houses...

 as Lugg.. It was part of the BBC Detective (1964-1969) series which was an anthology series featuring adaptations of detective stories.

Campion (1989-1990)

In 1989 and 1990, the first eight of the novels (excluding The Crime at Black Dudley) were adapted over two seasons, with each story shown in two hour-long episodes. Peter Davison
Peter Davison
Peter Davison is a British actor, best known for his roles as Tristan Farnon in the television version of James Herriot's All Creatures Great and Small and the fifth incarnation of the Doctor in Doctor Who, which he played from 1982 to 1984.-Early life:Davison was born Peter Moffett in Streatham,...

 played Campion, Brian Glover
Brian Glover
Brian Glover was an English character actor, writer and wrestler. Glover was a professional wrestler, teacher, and finally a film, television and stage actor. He once said, "You play to your strengths in this game. My strength is as a bald-headed, rough-looking Yorkshireman".-Early life:Glover was...

 was Lugg and Andrew Burt
Andrew Burt
Andrew Burt is an English actor, who has appeared in many British TV drama series from the 1970s to the present day...

 was Oates.

External links

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