Phryne Fisher
| Phryne Fisher | |
|---|---|
| Phryne Fisher mysteries character | |
| First appearance | Cocaine Blues |
| Created by | Kerry Greenwood |
| Portrayed by | Essie Davis |
| Information | |
| Gender | Female |
| Title | The Honourable |
| Children | Jane Fisher and Ruth Fisher (adopted daughters) |
| Religion | Church of England |
Phryne Fisher (/ˈfraɪ.niː/, FRY-knee), often called "Miss Fisher", is the main character in Australian author Kerry Greenwood's series of Phryne Fisher detective novels. Phryne is a wealthy aristocrat and private detective who lives in St Kilda, Melbourne, in the late 1920s. With the assistance of her maid Dot, and Bert and Cec (who are wharfies, taxi drivers and red raggers), she solves all manner of crimes as a quintessentially Australian construction.[1] Phryne is no ordinary aristocrat, as she can fly a plane, drives her own car (a Hispano-Suiza) and sometimes wears trousers. However, while displaying bohemian panache, she manages also to maintain style and class.[2]
Phryne was accidentally named after a famous Greek courtesan who lived in the 4th century BC. At her christening, her father forgot the classical name, Psyche, that her parents had intended for her.[3]
Phryne's history
Phryne was not always rich, having been born into a poor family in Richmond, Melbourne. In World War I, the other male heirs to a British peerage were killed, and Phryne's father inherited the title. As his daughter, she was granted the style of "The Honourable Phryne Fisher" and an enormous fortune. She has an aunt, Mrs. Prudence Stanley.
After completing school, Phryne ran away to France where she joined a French women's ambulance unit during WWI, receiving a reward for bravery and a French war pension. She then worked as an artist's model in Montparnasse after the war. After several years here and there, Phryne moved temporarily from England to Melbourne to investigate for a family friend. She enjoyed the lifestyle so much that she stayed on permanently. Through the course of the books, Phryne collects a personal maid, Dot; two adoptive daughters, Ruth and Jane (whom she rescued from slavery); a cat, Ember; a dog, Molly; and two loyal servants, the Butlers. She also has relationships with a string of lovers, most notably Lin Chung, a wealthy Chinese man (whom she rescues in the city one evening). Lin is the only lover with whom she maintains a relationship for more than a few books and even goes so far as to make a deal with his autocratic and overbearing grandmother that after he is married, she (Phryne) be allowed to continue a friendship with him.
Main characters
- Phryne Fisher
- Mrs Prudence Stanley – Phryne's aunt
- Dorothy 'Dot' Williams – Phryne's confidential maid and social secretary
- Detective Inspector John 'Jack' Robinson – Phryne's police insider
- Bert and Cec (Albert Johnson and Cecil Yates) – Taxi drivers and Phryne's investigative assistants
- Jane (née Graham) and Ruth (née Collins) Fisher – Phryne's adopted daughters
- Hugh Collins – one of Jack's policemen and Dot's husband-to-be
- Mr and Mrs Butler – Phryne's butler and cook
Secondary characters
- Lin Chung – Phryne's lover
- Li Pen – A Shao Lin monk and Lin's bodyguard
The books
- Cocaine Blues (1989) aka Death by Misadventure[4]
- Flying Too High (1990)
- Murder on the Ballarat Train (1991)
- Death at Victoria Dock (1992)
- The Green Mill Murder (1993)
- Blood and Circuses (1994)
- Ruddy Gore (1995)
- Urn Burial (1996)
- Raisins and Almonds (1997)
- Death Before Wicket (1999)
- Away with the Fairies (2001)
- Murder in Montparnasse (2002)
- The Castlemaine Murders (2003)
- Queen of the Flowers (2004)
- Death by Water (2005)
- Murder in the Dark (2006)
- Murder on a Midsummer Night (2008)
- Dead Man's Chest (2010)
- Unnatural Habits (2012)
- Murder and Mendelssohn (2013)
- The Phryne Fisher Mysteries: Cocaine Blues / Flying Too High (omnibus) (2004)
- A Question of Death (short story collection) (2008)
Television
Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries is a television costume drama series based on the novels, starring Essie Davis in the title role. The Australian Broadcasting Corporation and Every Cloud Productions produced the series of thirteen one-hour episodes, the first series of which premiered on ABC1 on 24 February 2012.[2]
A second series of 13 episodes followed, a third series of 8 episodes has been released[5] and funding for a fourth season has approved. The first episode aired on 8 May 2015, and the season wrapped up with Episode 8 on 26 June 2015.[6]
The series has been well awarded:
- Australian Film Institute Award Nomination for Best Television Drama Series (2016)
- Australian Film Institute Award Nomination for Best Costume Design in Television (2016)
- Australian Film Institute Award Winner for Best Costume Design in Television (2014)
- Australian Film Institute Award Nomination for Best Lead Actress in a Television Drama (Essie Davis, 2013)
- Logie Awards, Gold Logie Award Nomination (Essie Davis, 2016)
- Logie Awards, Silver Logie Award Nomination for Best Actress (Essie Davis, 2016)
- Logie Awards, Silver Logie Award Nomination for Most Outstanding Actress (Essie Davis, 2016)
- Logie Awards, Silver Logie Award Nomination for Most Popular Actress (Ashleigh Cummings, 2013)
- Sichuan TV Festival, Gold Panda Award Nomination for Best Writing for a Television Series (2013)
Bibliography
- Greenwood, Kerry (2006). Cocaine Blues. Scottsdale, Arizona: Poisoned Pen Press. ISBN 1-59058-236-5.
- Greenwood, Kerry (2006). Death at Victoria Dock. Scottsdale, Arizona: Poisoned Pen Press. ISBN 1-59058-238-1.
- Greenwood, Kerry (2006). Murder on the Ballarat Train. Scottsdale, Arizona: Poisoned Pen Press. ISBN 1-59058-241-1.
References
- ↑ Johnson-Woods, Toni; Franks, Rachel (2015). "Phryne Fisher: Feminism and Modernism in Historical Crime Fiction". The Australian Journal of Crime Fiction. 1 (2). Retrieved 18 January 2016.
- 1 2 Official website; accessed 15 February 2015.
- ↑ Greenwood, Kerry (1989). Cocaine Blues.
- ↑ Kerry Greenwood at Fantastic Fiction
- ↑ Baugher, Lacy (16 June 2014). "Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries Will Return for a Third Season". weta.org. Retrieved 14 December 2014. and broadcast in 2015.
- ↑ "Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries (2012– ), Episode List". 2016-01-18.