Murder Ahoy
The opening scene is of Miss Marple entering a clothing shop to purchase a naval dress uniform for herself. Next she walks to a meeting of the "Cape of Good Hope Youth Reclamation Centre" for a Board…
Murder Ahoy
The opening scene is of Miss Marple entering a clothing shop to purchase a naval dress uniform for herself. Next she walks to a meeting of the "Cape of Good Hope Youth Reclamation Centre" for a Board of Trustees meeting, where she is the new member, replacing her uncle Rear Admiral Sir Hubert Marple. This Centre attempts to turn around juvenile delinquents by having them spend time on a Napoleonic era sailing ship, the Battledore. One of the members, Cecil Ffolly-Hardwicke is extremely anxious to bring up a matter about something he found out on his recent inspection of the Battledore. Miss Marple accidentally places her hand in his container of snuff. When he is finally allowed to speak, he takes a sniff of snuff and drops dead immediately. The police suspect a heart attack but Miss Marple knows otherwise because while everyone's attention was turned to Ffolly-Hardwicke, his snuff box was emptied by someone coming in from the window. Miss Marple notes that FFolly-Hardwicke scribbled "33" over and over again on his meeting notes. She takes home some of the snuff that she had spilled earlier. At her cottage, with her friend Mr. Springer, she does some chemical tests and determines that Hardwicke's snuff was contaminated with strychnine. Miss Marple arranges a visit to the Battledore where, as a trustee, she is treated with great deference. On the ship we meet the Captain Sydney Rhumstone (Lionel Jeffries) who is unhappy about her visit but exults that her stay will be only for the day. He soon learns to his dismay that she plans to stay several days. The crew, besides the captain and the youths, consists of Commander Breeze-Connington, Lieutenant Commander Dimchurch, Lieutenant Compton, Sub Lieutenant Humbert, Matron 1st Class Fanbraid, and Assistant Matron Shirley Boston. It becomes clear that the captain and the matron are having an affair as are Sub Lieutenant Humbert and Assistant Matron Boston. Both of these are against naval regulations and must be kept secret. We also see that Humbert and Compton detest each other because Compton keeps flirting with Boston. Lieutenant Commander Compton acts very suspiciously through every scene. In the mean time, Mr. Stringer has checked into a hotel that gives him a view of the harbored ship. This first night when Mr. Stringer and Miss Marple are supposed to communicate in Morse code, she intercepts a shore message. "Job must be done tonight, Dusty". We see that the message was meant for Lieutenant Compton. Later he reports to the captain that shore leave has returned minus one Dusty. Dusty Miller is apparently the worst of the delinquents. This was a ruse to get the captain to send out another group to do whatever the job was. Mr. Stringer receives a message from Miss Marple "Shore Patrol on way, follow". He does so and discovers they are burglars. He borrows their boat to row out to the Battledore and report this to Miss Marple. This is all overheard by Compton who takes a belaying pin with the intention of killing Miss Marple. However, he is killed by someone we can't see by being run through with a sword. The next morning Miss Marple and the captain discover Compton's body hung from a yard arm. Chief Inspector Craddock and Sergeant Bacon come on board to conduct an investigation. Unfortunately for him he discovers that all officers on board own a sword. The captain is not happy to learn that he was the last person to see Compton alive at 11PM the previous night. Craddock receives word that the shore patrol is all at the police station reporting the theft of their boat which prevented them from returning to the ship. Craddock is now dismayed to discover Miss Marple on board. She, in the mean time, is searching Compton's room. Some one enters the room so she hides in a closet. When the person leaves, she discovers a bureau drawer left slightly open and in it is a very large envelope addressed to the trustees and with the number "33" scribbled on it. Craddock goes ashore to find the dinghy as he believes whoever stole it is also the murderer of Compton. Miss Marple hurries to Mr. Stringer's hotel to warn him to lay low but then changes her mind and sends him to Milchester to find out what kind of information would be contained in the envelope she pulled from the bureau. Craddock has received a tip on the whereabouts of the person who stole the dinghy but when he rushes to the hotel room he finds only Miss Marple. He places her in a jail cell where he takes a statement from her and then releases her at the orders of the Chief Constable. He informs her that he thinks he knows who was Compton's accomplice. Six robberies have taken place in recent weeks and in each case a party had been held and Sub Lieutenant Humbert and his girlfriend Matron Boston had attended the party. Miss Marple tells him he is wrong in his thinking. That night we see Assistant Matron Boston leave her room and go down into the ship's hold where she reaches into a cannon, a snap is heard, and she pulls out her hand bleeding, she then collapses, dead. Meanwhile, Miss Marple is creeping around and sees Lieutenant Commander Dimchurch sneaking into the ship's medical stores. A scream is heard and Miss Maple finds the body of the assistant matron. The next morning Craddock and Bacon are again on board and tell the captain that he must cancel the night's Trafalgar Day Celebration which exasperates the captain. The doctor who investigates Boston's body announces she was killed with a rare poison. The captain wants Miss Marple off the ship. Craddock confers with Miss Marple; he has now transferred his suspicion from Humbert to the assistant matron. Miss Marple suggests that the assistant matron was pretending to love Humbert so she could be invited to the parties (Humbert was a member of a society family) and that she really was in love with her partner Compton. She also speculates that a mousetrap loaded with poison had been hidden in the cannon and that she had decided to hide her share of the loot in the same place that someone else had chosen to hide something also. During this conversation in the captain's cabin, CI Craddock is knocked out by a rock thrown through the window of the ship. On the rock was a note to Miss Marple from Mr. Stringer. The note said that the envelope he had been investigating was used to send quarterly reports of the ship accounts and that the report showed the ship's compliment at 45 when in reality it was only 33. She talks Craddock into allowing the captain to take the crew onshore that night for the Trafalgar Day celebration so that a trap can be set for the murderer. She thinks Compton had stumbled on the swindle and was blackmailing whoever was responsible for the false reports and that whoever that was had killed Ffolly-Hardwicke and Compton (and incidentally Assistant Matron Boston). That evening, every one of the crew go onshore, but Miss Marple stays claiming she wants to cherish her last night on-board ship. She also suggests to all the officers that she is aware of the swindling plot. She hatches a scheme to use herself as bait and have Craddock and Bacon hiding on board. Later, a ship's boat pushes off toward the ship with one person on board. Craddock and Bacon are hiding under a hatch that is propped open with a belaying pin. We hear footsteps and see one of the male officers walking the deck. He accidentally bumps the belaying pin and Craddock and Bacon are locked in. Miss Marple hears footsteps approaching her cabin and it is Lieutenant Commander Dimchurch, who stayed on-board. He seems to be threatening her but then confesses that he wanted to tell her he was resigning because he has incurable seasickness. She says that he needn't resign. He then leaves and is struck unconscious by someone on deck. Miss Marple investigates the hold and finds the booby-trapped cannon. She is carrying a sword to poke around. Just as she finds the hiding place, she is interrupted by Commander Breeze-Connington. He reveals himself to be somewhat insane and thinks he is rightfully an admiral. He has been embezzling to make up the pay difference. She calls for help from Craddock who doesn't appear so she and the commander duel with swords. Although she reveals she was ladies national fencing champion in 1931, she is over-matched by the commander who announces he was fencing champion of the Yangtze Fleet that same year. They fight and he disarms her. Just as he is about to run her through, Mr. Stringer appears from behind and conks the commander on the head. Craddock and Bacon are released from where they have been trapped. The next morning, the captain is found innocent of malfeasance by the board of trustees which has assembled on-board. He confesses his love for the matron and their desire to get married. The trustee allows him to marry and remain as captain. The final scene is the captain and matron saying goodbye to Miss Marple as she is rowed to shore. The captain jokes that he thought all along she was "an old darling". They laugh.
Murder Ahoy
Comedy,Crime,Drama
Film Details
The opening scene is of Miss Marple entering a clothing shop to purchase a naval dress uniform for herself. Next she walks to a meeting of the "Cape of Good Hope Youth Reclamation Centre" for a Board of Trustees meeting, where she is the new member, replacing her uncle Rear Admiral Sir Hubert Marple. This Centre attempts to turn around juvenile delinquents by having them spend time on a Napoleonic era sailing ship, the Battledore.
One of the members, Cecil Ffolly-Hardwicke is extremely anxious to bring up a matter about something he found out on his recent inspection of the Battledore. Miss Marple accidentally places her hand in his container of snuff. When he is finally allowed to speak, he takes a sniff of snuff and drops dead immediately.
The police suspect a heart attack but Miss Marple knows otherwise because while everyone's attention was turned to Ffolly-Hardwicke, his snuff box was emptied by someone coming in from the window. Miss Marple notes that FFolly-Hardwicke scribbled "33" over and over again on his meeting notes. She takes home some of the snuff that she had spilled earlier.
At her cottage, with her friend Mr. Springer, she does some chemical tests and determines that Hardwicke's snuff was contaminated with strychnine. Miss Marple arranges a visit to the Battledore where, as a trustee, she is treated with great deference.
On the ship we meet the Captain Sydney Rhumstone (Lionel Jeffries) who is unhappy about her visit but exults that her stay will be only for the day. He soon learns to his dismay that she plans to stay several days. The crew, besides the captain and the youths, consists of Commander Breeze-Connington, Lieutenant Commander Dimchurch, Lieutenant Compton, Sub Lieutenant Humbert, Matron 1st Class Fanbraid, and Assistant Matron Shirley Boston.
It becomes clear that the captain and the matron are having an affair as are Sub Lieutenant Humbert and Assistant Matron Boston. Both of these are against naval regulations and must be kept secret. We also see that Humbert and Compton detest each other because Compton keeps flirting with Boston.
Lieutenant Commander Compton acts very suspiciously through every scene. In the mean time, Mr. Stringer has checked into a hotel that gives him a view of the harbored ship.
This first night when Mr. Stringer and Miss Marple are supposed to communicate in Morse code, she intercepts a shore message. "Job must be done tonight, Dusty".
We see that the message was meant for Lieutenant Compton. Later he reports to the captain that shore leave has returned minus one Dusty. Dusty Miller is apparently the worst of the delinquents.
This was a ruse to get the captain to send out another group to do whatever the job was. Mr. Stringer receives a message from Miss Marple "Shore Patrol on way, follow".
He does so and discovers they are burglars. He borrows their boat to row out to the Battledore and report this to Miss Marple. This is all overheard by Compton who takes a belaying pin with the intention of killing Miss Marple.
However, he is killed by someone we can't see by being run through with a sword. The next morning Miss Marple and the captain discover Compton's body hung from a yard arm. Chief Inspector Craddock and Sergeant Bacon come on board to conduct an investigation.
Unfortunately for him he discovers that all officers on board own a sword. The captain is not happy to learn that he was the last person to see Compton alive at 11PM the previous night. Craddock receives word that the shore patrol is all at the police station reporting the theft of their boat which prevented them from returning to the ship.
Craddock is now dismayed to discover Miss Marple on board. She, in the mean time, is searching Compton's room. Some one enters the room so she hides in a closet.
When the person leaves, she discovers a bureau drawer left slightly open and in it is a very large envelope addressed to the trustees and with the number "33" scribbled on it. Craddock goes ashore to find the dinghy as he believes whoever stole it is also the murderer of Compton. Miss Marple hurries to Mr.
Stringer's hotel to warn him to lay low but then changes her mind and sends him to Milchester to find out what kind of information would be contained in the envelope she pulled from the bureau. Craddock has received a tip on the whereabouts of the person who stole the dinghy but when he rushes to the hotel room he finds only Miss Marple. He places her in a jail cell where he takes a statement from her and then releases her at the orders of the Chief Constable.
He informs her that he thinks he knows who was Compton's accomplice. Six robberies have taken place in recent weeks and in each case a party had been held and Sub Lieutenant Humbert and his girlfriend Matron Boston had attended the party. Miss Marple tells him he is wrong in his thinking.
That night we see Assistant Matron Boston leave her room and go down into the ship's hold where she reaches into a cannon, a snap is heard, and she pulls out her hand bleeding, she then collapses, dead. Meanwhile, Miss Marple is creeping around and sees Lieutenant Commander Dimchurch sneaking into the ship's medical stores. A scream is heard and Miss Maple finds the body of the assistant matron.
The next morning Craddock and Bacon are again on board and tell the captain that he must cancel the night's Trafalgar Day Celebration which exasperates the captain. The doctor who investigates Boston's body announces she was killed with a rare poison. The captain wants Miss Marple off the ship.
Craddock confers with Miss Marple; he has now transferred his suspicion from Humbert to the assistant matron. Miss Marple suggests that the assistant matron was pretending to love Humbert so she could be invited to the parties (Humbert was a member of a society family) and that she really was in love with her partner Compton. She also speculates that a mousetrap loaded with poison had been hidden in the cannon and that she had decided to hide her share of the loot in the same place that someone else had chosen to hide something also.
During this conversation in the captain's cabin, CI Craddock is knocked out by a rock thrown through the window of the ship. On the rock was a note to Miss Marple from Mr. Stringer.
The note said that the envelope he had been investigating was used to send quarterly reports of the ship accounts and that the report showed the ship's compliment at 45 when in reality it was only 33. She talks Craddock into allowing the captain to take the crew onshore that night for the Trafalgar Day celebration so that a trap can be set for the murderer. She thinks Compton had stumbled on the swindle and was blackmailing whoever was responsible for the false reports and that whoever that was had killed Ffolly-Hardwicke and Compton (and incidentally Assistant Matron Boston).
That evening, every one of the crew go onshore, but Miss Marple stays claiming she wants to cherish her last night on-board ship. She also suggests to all the officers that she is aware of the swindling plot. She hatches a scheme to use herself as bait and have Craddock and Bacon hiding on board.
Later, a ship's boat pushes off toward the ship with one person on board. Craddock and Bacon are hiding under a hatch that is propped open with a belaying pin. We hear footsteps and see one of the male officers walking the deck.
He accidentally bumps the belaying pin and Craddock and Bacon are locked in. Miss Marple hears footsteps approaching her cabin and it is Lieutenant Commander Dimchurch, who stayed on-board. He seems to be threatening her but then confesses that he wanted to tell her he was resigning because he has incurable seasickness.
She says that he needn't resign. He then leaves and is struck unconscious by someone on deck. Miss Marple investigates the hold and finds the booby-trapped cannon.
She is carrying a sword to poke around. Just as she finds the hiding place, she is interrupted by Commander Breeze-Connington. He reveals himself to be somewhat insane and thinks he is rightfully an admiral.
He has been embezzling to make up the pay difference. She calls for help from Craddock who doesn't appear so she and the commander duel with swords. Although she reveals she was ladies national fencing champion in 1931, she is over-matched by the commander who announces he was fencing champion of the Yangtze Fleet that same year.
They fight and he disarms her. Just as he is about to run her through, Mr. Stringer appears from behind and conks the commander on the head.
Craddock and Bacon are released from where they have been trapped. The next morning, the captain is found innocent of malfeasance by the board of trustees which has assembled on-board. He confesses his love for the matron and their desire to get married.
The trustee allows him to marry and remain as captain. The final scene is the captain and matron saying goodbye to Miss Marple as she is rowed to shore. The captain jokes that he thought all along she was "an old darling".
They laugh..