Agatha Christie Wiki

In the short story The House of Lurking Death, Captain Dennis Radclyffe was the nephew of Lady Radclyffe's husband, and originally the intended heir. After Lady Radclyffe and Dennis had a row, the old woman left the fortune to her niece Lois. Lois has in turn written a will, leaving all of the money to Dennis. His father was a cousin of Miss Logan.

Dennis died after drinking a poisoned cocktail.

Portrayals[]

In LWT's 1983 TV adaptation of The House of Lurking Death, the lastname is changed to "Radcliffe". The character is portrayed by Michael Cochrane. Like in the original, he has a dissolute lifestyle and is also a philanderer. As Tuppence suspects, Lois was probably in love with him. But here, he is also carrying on with the parlour maid Esther Quant. He also has a relationship with Mary Chilcott. At one point, Mary asks him when he is going to tell Lois about them.