The Detection Club

The Detection Club was set up in or around (its origins are suitably shrouded in mystery) 1928 by a group of leading detective novelists. The prime mover was Anthony Berkeley and early members included Dorothy L. Sayers, Agatha Christie and Freeman Wills Crofts. It is the oldest and most august society of crime writers in the world. Essentially a social and dining organisation, it currently holds three meetings each year. Members are elected by secret ballot and there is an 'initiation ceremony' which involves the taking of an oath, the wording of which has varied over the years. Past Presidents of the Club include G.K. Chesterton, E.C. Bentley, Sayers and Christie. The current President is Simon Brett.

The Detection Club has been responsible for various noteworthy books, including 'round-robin' novels, most famously The Floating Admiral (1932), short story anthologies, and even investigations into real-life crimes: The Anatomy of Murder (1936.)

In 2008 I was elected to membership of the Detection Club. This page is not in any sense an 'official' account of the Club's activities, but will develop to include information about the Club's history and previous publications.