Albert Campion

[1] Supposedly created as a parody of Dorothy L. Sayers' detective Lord Peter Wimsey,[2] Campion established his own identity, and matured and developed as the series progressed.

He was educated at Rugby School and the (fictitious) St. Ignatius' College, Cambridge (according to a mini-biography included in Sweet Danger; this is also hinted at in Police at the Funeral).

Ingenious, resourceful and well-educated, in his twenties he assumed the name Campion and began a life as an adventurer and detective.

Campion is thin, blond, wears horn-rimmed glasses,[3] and is often described as affable, inoffensive and bland, with a deceptively blank and unintelligent expression.

[5] Another source says the name was suggested by Allingham's husband, Philip Youngman Carter, and may allude to the Jesuit martyr St. Edmund Campion.

Campion's sister Valentine Ferris plays a central part in The Fashion in Shrouds; in that book, it is revealed that they are both estranged from most of their family.

From Mystery Mile onwards, Campion is normally aided by his manservant, Magersfontein Lugg, an uncouth, rough-and-tumble fellow who used to be a burglar.

Campion also has many friends and allies, seemingly scattered all across London and the English countryside, often including professional criminals.

In the short story "The Meaning of the Act" Campion explains to Oates that the secret of his success is to 'take a drink with anyone, and pick your pals where you find 'em'.

Crime writer Mike Ripley completed an unfinished Campion manuscript, started by Philip Youngman Carter before his death.

[10] Beginning in 2012, Ripley, with the approval and agreement of the Margery Allingham Society, completed Youngman Carter's manuscript, which has become Mr Campion's Farewell.

The 1959 adaptation of Dancers in Mourning also featured John Ruddock as Oates, Denis Quilley as Jimmy Sutane, Michael Gough as Squire Mercer and Noel Howlett as 'Uncle' William Faraday.

In 1968 The Case of the Late Pig was adapted for television starring Brian Smith as Campion, and George Sewell as Lugg.