Photo: Murray/Fairfax Media via Getty Images (1960)
Sample of authors
Marsh, Ngaio
The New Zealand author Dame Edith Ngaio Marsh was born in Merivale, Christchurch. Her father was an immigrant English bank manager and her mother was born in New Zealand, although her family too originally came from England. Ngaio is the Maori word for "reflection on water". A somewhat eccentric and confused man, Marsh's father did not report his daughter's birth to the authorities until 1900,...
Literary figures
Paul Temple
Gender: Male
A successful British crime writer who also turns out to be a clever amateur detective. He is handsome, exceptionally well brought-up (his most offensive expletive is ‘by Timothy!’) and is quite often called in to help Scotland Yard, author Francis Durbridge tells us. During an investigation, Paul Temple meets the beautiful and intelligent journalist Louise ‘Steve’ Trent who becomes his wife.