Downton Abbey's Phyllis Logan describes new show as "Murder She Wrote meets Miss Marple on steroids"
Logan stars in 5's new mystery series Murder Most Puzzling.
With so many different murder mystery/detective series now available to watch, it can be handy to have a sense of which shows from the past they most resemble.
Thankfully, Phyllis Logan, star of new 5 drama Murder Most Puzzling, has given us just that - and boy, does she have a pitch for cosy crime fans.
"The programme is a bit like Murder She Wrote meets Miss Marple on steroids!" Logan explained.
"It is a police procedural, but not as we know it, and it’s full of great characters that add so much to it, like DCI Hooper, played by Adam Best, who is just so funny, he made me laugh all the time.
"Our writer, Dominique Maloney, wrote such a clever, funny script, and that’s what I focused on for the whole shoot, because if you play the episodes as they are written you just can’t go wrong. I’ve seen a trailer and it all looks very exciting!"
The series stars Logan as Cora Felton, AKA The Puzzle Lady. When she moves to a new town, Bakerbury, she is brought in by local detective DCI Hooper to help crack the case of a teenage girl who is found dead in a local cemetery, with an enigmatic clue in her pocket.
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It is based on the best-selling Puzzle Lady books by American author Parnell Hall, and also stars Charlotte Hope, Alistair Brammer, Nick Danan, Jack Weise, Becky Baidwan, Richard Croxford, Conor Sánchez and Amber Mendez-Martin, among others.
Logan's reference to Miss Marple is particularly relevant now, as Agatha Christie's great-grandson James Pritchard has revealed that a new adaptation of the Maple stories is in the works.
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He said earlier this year that he "couldn't be more excited" about bringing the character back to the screen, adding that he's been "trying to get something for Miss Marple off the ground for a very long time".
"For good reasons, Poirot has stolen her limelight since time began," he said. "I re-read all the Marple stories five years ago and I'd forgotten how good they were.
"Poirot has perhaps three or four of the all-time great Agatha Christies, but if you did a top 10, you'd get at least two or three Marples in there. She's underestimated."
Murder Most Puzzling premieres on 5 at 8pm Thursday 19th June 2025.
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Authors
James Hibbs is a Drama Writer for Radio Times, covering programmes across both streaming platforms and linear channels. He previously worked in PR, first for a B2B agency and subsequently for international TV production company Fremantle. He possesses a BA in English and Theatre Studies and an NCTJ Level 5 Diploma in Journalism.
