Mr Hamilton Betts

In the short story The Affair of the Pink Pearl, Mr Hamilton Betts and his wife are house guests of the Kingston Bruces. After his wife lost an expensive pink pearl at the house, Colonel Kingston Bruce called in The International Detective Agency.

Tommy and Tuppence found Mr Betts "dyspeptic and subdued". He left most of the talking to his wife and only spoke up to mention the value of the stolen pearl. Nonetheless, Tommy, who planned to follow the style of Thorndyke (famous for his use of gadgets) for this investigation, managed to impress both him and his wife with his camera which he says looks like an ordinary camera but is really a special invention of his own.

Portrayals
In LWT's 1983 TV adaptation of The Affair of the Pink Pearl, Hamilton Betts is portrayed by William Hootkins. His reason for staying with the Kingston-Bruces is slightly different. Colonel Kingston Bruce tells Tommy that he hopes that Betts will invest in one of his companies. Since Lady Laura Barton os already a house guest, the Colonel invited the Betts to stay with him in order to impress them. Unlike the description in the original story, here Hamilton Betts is hardly "dyspeptic and subdued". He is energetic and forthright. He tells Tommy that he does not intend to be out of pocket because of the theft of the pearl. As it happened in the house of the Colonel, he held him responsible, suggesting that he planned to sue him.