Dead Giveaway – Simon Brett (1)

Sydnee had mustered all of the researchers who had worked on If The Cap Fits to go through the events of the day Barrett Doran died. In an unguarded moment, when they had been trying to think of somewhere private to meet, Charles had suggested his bedsitter. He had not taken into account the fact that he had only two chairs. Nor had he thought through the reaction of these television sophisticates to his somewhat approximate view of tidiness.

None of them was impolite enough to say anything, but he sensed a sniff of disapproval in the air. Their standards were probably different from his. In domestic arrangements, Charles always made a distinction between hygiene and tidiness. And, though he knew he offended against the strict canons of the second, he felt confident that he did not transgress with regard to the first.

Assuming, of course, that one didn’t regard dust as unhygienic. There was a generous cover of dust over every surface. And, since none of these surfaces were flat, but tended to be piles of books, clothes, stationery and scripts, the general effect could be, to the uncharitable eye, seen as a mess. This view seemed to be reflected in his visitors’ expressions. Sydnee sat on a chair. The other girl, Chita, who had been responsible for the contestants on the studio day, had the other one.

Charles shared the edge of the bed with the rather exquisite young man called Quentin, who had been in charge of the celebrities. Charles had offered whisky and wine; they had all chosen white wine. He had some chilling (a little belatedly – he’d only thought about it ten minutes before they arrived) in his small fridge, and had soon assembled a whisky tumbler, a half-pint tankard and a chipped glass that had been given away with soap powder for his guests.

He was left with a pink plastic tooth-mug for his whisky. The atmosphere was not unfriendly, though the three researchers seemed to be suffering mild disbelief at the idea of people actually living in such surroundings. Charles thought it might be only a matter of time before they started making a documentary about him. Sydnee opened the meeting.

This ebook is copyright material and must not be copied, reproduced, transferred, distributed, leased, licensed or publicly performed or used in any way except as specifically permitted in writing by the publishers, as allowed under the terms and conditions under which it was purchased or as strictly permitted by applicable copyright law.

Any unauthorised distribution or use of this text may be a direct infringement of the author’s and publisher’s rights and those responsible may be liable in law accordingly. OceanofPDF.com This title first published in Great Britain in 1985 by Victor Gollancz eBook edition first published in 2012 by Severn House Digital an imprint of Severn House Publishers Limited Copyright © 1985 Simon Brett.

The right of Simon Brett to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted in accordance with the Copyright, Designs & Patents Act 1988. A CIP catalogue record for this title is available from the British Library. ISBN-13: 978-1-4483-0010-5 (epub) Except where actual historical events and characters are being described for the storyline of this novel, all situations in this publication are fictitious and any resemblance to living persons is purely coincidental. This eBook produced by Palimpsest Book Production Limited, Falkirk, Stirlingshire, Scotland.

OceanofPDF.com To Wendy and Chris OceanofPDF.com Chapter One ‘MR . . . PARIS DID you say?’ ‘Yes.’ The girl on the desk at West End Television’s main Reception looked dubiously down at a list. Charles Paris’s name didn’t seem to leap out of the page at her. ‘For what show did you say?’ ‘If The Cap Fits.’ This title did not dispel her scepticism. ‘No show of that name down on my list.’ ‘It’s a pilot of a new game show. Something to do with hats.’

‘Hats. Ah.’ Comprehension dawned slowly. ‘That might be what I’ve got down here as Hats Off!’ ‘It could be. Maybe the title’s been changed. As I say, it is only a pilot. Studio A,’ Charles added helpfully. ‘Yes, that’s where Hats Off!’s booked in.’ The girl was forced, regretfully, to accept his bona fides.

‘All right. If you like to sit down over there, someone will be down shortly.’ ‘Thank you.’

This is a short excerpt from the opening of “” by Unknown, quoted for review and introduction purposes. All rights belong to the copyright holders.

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• Unique ID: 6005e1ad13e30283
• File Extension: .pdf
• File Size: 783,016 bytes (0.747 MB)
• Title: –
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• ISBN: 9781448300105
• Pages: 149
• Language: English (en)

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• Total Words: 49,288
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