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Anthony Horowitz's Magpie Murders to be made into TV show starring Timothy Spall - details 

Agatha Christie fans will love this one! 

Emmy Griffiths
TV & Film Editor
March 5, 2021
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Anthony Horowitz's bestselling murder mystery novel Magpie Murders is set to be a new TV series exclusively for Britbox - and it was recently revealed Timothy Spall will be starring as  Atticus Pünd. Find out more about the series here... 

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The series follows Susan Ryeland - who will be played by Leslie Manville - as an editor who investigates the murder of one of her author clients, Alan Conway, finding clues in one of the manuscripts of his famous Atticus Pünd detective novels. 

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Speaking about the role, Timothy said: "I am delighted to be part of this adaptation of Magpie Murders, and to be working once again with the immensely talented Lesley Manville, Peter Cattaneo, the fantastic cast and all the team at Eleventh Hour Films. 

"I have huge respect for Anthony Horowitz and think the audience will really enjoy his brilliant adaptation of his wonderful and ingenious novel. I’m really looking forward to getting to grips with bringing the intriguing Atticus Pünd to life." 

spall timothy

Timothy will play Atticus Pund

The chief executive of Eleventh Hour Films, Jill Green, added: "Atticus Pünd is a complex, deep thinking 1950s detective who is at the top of his game – so who better than to have Timothy Spall?" Fans were delighted by the news, with one writing: "Great news, halfway through Magpie Murders!" Another added: "Fascinated to see how this story within a story will be retold on screen. Something to look forward to." 

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It is certainly a busy time for Anthony, who is also the bestselling author of Alex Rider - which has also been turned into a TV series for Amazon Prime Video. The author recently revealed that the show was returning for season two. After a fan's question about when filming would commence on Twitter, he wrote: "We've had the read-through! Starting soon." 

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