Ruth Rendell

“Ruth is a wonderful writer. She creates such vivid characters that they leap off the page. You sense a huge vitality and energy. She’s so marvellous on mood, setting and atmosphere, which is always important”  — Christopher Ravenscroft

Ruth Rendell is one of Britain’s most prolific contemporary writers. Her first novel, From Doon with Death (1964), introduced Chief Inspector Reginald Wexford - ‘Fifty-two years old, the very prototype of an actor playing a top brass policeman’.  In July 1997 she was conferred a life peerage and appointed to the House of Lords as Baroness Rendell of Babergh.

“I don’t have the joyous relationship with the Chief Inspector that people assume. I am often asked if I am in love with him, as lady writers of detective fiction are supposed to love their heroes. I always say that he should be in love with me - look what I’ve done for him!

Women love him. He seems to exude a particular sexual attraction which has something to do with an air of security and reliability and absolute safety. I know because women are always writing to me about it. They want me to kill off Dora so that they can marry Reg. They think that with such a man they would be safe for ever. They probably wouldn’t, of course. But that’s how they feel about him.

Freud wanted to know what it is that women want… Well, one thing women want is someone to make them laugh. Wexford is quite witty, I think. He is also a big, solid type, very cool and calm. He also likes women very much and always has time for them. What more could you want in a man?

Wexford was always going to be a very big man … but I described him as an ugly man with irregular features and George is certainly not that. George is very handsome. But then, after a time, I began to see him as Reg. And now I could not imagine Reg Wexford any other way. Christopher was always Mike Burden. As soon as I saw him he was my Burden made-flesh.  Of all the TV adaptations, the Wexfords are my favourites.  And I’d say that owes even more to those two wonderful actors than to the adaptors.”

image: Ruth Rendell

Recent Ruth Rendell | Barbara Vine novels

The Vault: ‘The new Wexford, a sequel to the 1998 standalone novel A Sight for Sore Eyes. A now retired Wexford finds that his special skills are needed to help solve an old case….’ Published by Hutchinson on 04 August 2011

Tigerlily’s Orchids: ‘When Stuart Font decides to throw a house-warming party in his new flat, he invites all the people in his building. The party will be one everyone remembers. But not for the right reasons. All the occupants of Lichfield House are about to experience a dramatic change in their lives…’ Published by Hutchinson on 05 August 2010

The Monster in the Box: ‘When Reg Wexford starts out as a young police officer, he is involved with a murder case where the perpetrator is not brought to justice. All these years, Wexford has harboured suspicions about the possible killer, who suddenly returns to Kingsmarkham. There are other apparently unrelated deaths, and once more Wexford is on the trail to uncover the evidence that will make the crucial connections….’ Published by Hutchinson on 30 September 2009

Midsummer Nights: ‘A selection of 10 stories commissioned to celebrate Glyndebourne’s 75th anniversary including The Martyr by Ruth Rendell, a mystical tale based on Handel’s opera Theodora …’ Published by Quercus Publishing on 01 April 2009

Portobello: ‘The Portobello area of West London has a rich personality – vibrant, brilliant in colour, noisy, with graffiti that approach art, bizarre and splendid. An indefinable edge to it adds a spice of danger. There is nothing safe about Portobello…’ Published by Hutchinson on 19 November 2008

The Birthday Present: ‘It’s late spring of 1990 and a love affair is flourishing between Ivor Tesham, a rising star in Margaret Thatcher’s government, and Hebe Furnal, a stunning North London housewife stuck in a dull marriage. Set amidst an age of IRA bombings, the first Gulf War, and sleazy politics, The Birthday Present is the gripping story of a fall from grace, and of a man who carries within him all the hypocrisy, greed and self-obsession of a troubled era…’ Published by Viking on 27 August 2008

  • Thirteen Steps Down: An ITV commissioned, two-part drama based on Ruth Rendell’s 2004 standalone novel, is now in production. The drama is being produced by Neil Zeiger and directed by Marek Losey with a screenplay by Adrian Hodges.

  • image: Radio 4 Last Word

    BBC Radio 4 Last Word: Ruth Rendell pays tribute to George Baker.

  • image: George Baker ITV Tribute

    ITV tribute to George Baker: ITV3 are showing the Wexford edition of Super Sleuths on Tuesday at 10:35PM as a tribute to George who sadly died on Friday.

  • image: George Baker 1931 - 2011

    George Baker 1931 – 2011: “He absolutely loved Wexford and he loved being Wexford…”