[3] Japp asks Poirot to join him at a house in Bardsley Garden Mews where a Mrs Barbara Allen shot herself the previous evening – Guy Fawkes Night – the moment of death being disguised by the noise of fireworks.

They interview Miss Plenderleith and find out that Mrs Allen was engaged to be married to Charles Laverton-West, an up-and-coming young MP but, although the pistol was the dead lady's, she cannot think of a reason why she should use it to commit suicide.

Feeling that Miss Plenderleith is keeping something back, they ask her about this male visitor, and she suggests that it was Major Eustace – a man that Mrs Allen had known in India and whom she has seen on several occasions in the past year.

She felt that Mrs Allen was afraid of the man, and Japp and Poirot suggest that Major Eustace was blackmailing her – an idea that meets with approval from Miss Plenderleith.

As part of his look around the house, Japp searches a cupboard under the stairs which contains items such as umbrellas, walking sticks, tennis racquets, a set of golf clubs, and a small attaché-case which Miss Plenderleith hurriedly claims is hers.

They also prove that he wore a set of cufflinks, a damaged part of which was found in the room where Mrs Allen died, and Japp arrests him for murder.

From clues concerning missing blotting paper, Poirot deduces that Mrs Allen had written a letter just before she died, which, if she killed herself, would indicate a suicide note.

The reason for the house party becomes obvious when all but Lord Mayfield and Sir George leave the dinner table, as they will discuss the plans for a new fighter aircraft that would give Britain supremacy in the air.

Carlile is sent to get the plans for the fighter from the safe, so he set off for the study, colliding with Mrs Vanderlyn who wants to retrieve a book she had forgotten in the drawing room.

The two men walk along the terrace, when Lord Mayfield is startled by a figure leaving the study by the French window, although Sir George sees nothing.

He was distracted when he heard a woman's scream in the hallway and ran out to find Leonie, Mrs Vanderlyn's maid, who claimed that she had seen a ghost.

Lady Julia believes that her son Reggie stole the plans since he is very short of money and was not in his room for a period the previous evening.

Poirot tells Lord Mayfield of Lady Julia's offer but that she is mistaken, as she does not know that her son was busy with Leonie at the time in question.

Lord Mayfield confesses to the deception but insists that his motive, refusing to be derailed from leading Britain through the coming world crisis, is pure.

On arrival at the Chevenix-Gore's house, Poirot meets the latter's wife Vanda, an eccentric who believes she is a reincarnation of an Egyptian queen, his adopted daughter Ruth and her cousin Hugo, and Miss Lingard, a secretary helping Sir Gervase research the family history.

Poirot is not convinced, however, and soon starts to prove that Sir Gervase was murdered because of various suspicious factors surrounding the death, including the position at which the bullet is believed to have struck a mirror.

Aside from the young Pamela Lyall and Sarah Blake, there is Valentine Chantry, a consciously beautiful woman who seems to swoon under the attentions of Douglas Gold.

Simon Nowell-Smith of The Times Literary Supplement's issue of 27 March 1937 wrote: "It would seem nowadays – it was not true of Sherlock Holmes, when the rules were less rigid – the shorter the detective story the less good it will be.

The reviewer felt that the title story was the strongest and that Triangle at Rhodes the weakest because, "the psychology of the characters is insufficiently developed to make the solution either predictable or plausible".

"[7] In The Observer's issue of 18 April 1937, "Torquemada" (Edward Powys Mathers) wrote: "It is rather for herself than for the four awkwardly shaped Poirot stories which make up Murder in the Mews that I give Agatha Christie first place [in his column] this week.

There is sufficient in the latest exploits of the little Belgian to remind us that his creator is our queen of detective writers, but by no means enough to win her that title if she had not already won it.

"[8] E. R. Punshon of The Guardian reviewed the collection in the 9 April 1937 issue when he wrote that it was "perhaps enough to say that they are all good, but not outstanding, Christie, and that in all of them Monsieur Poirot... is given full opportunity to display his accustomed acumen."

"[11] All four stories featured as one-hour episodes in the ITV series Agatha Christie's Poirot with David Suchet in the title role.

As well as appearing in "Murder in the Mews", the televised versions of "The Incredible Theft" and "Dead Man's Mirror" also feature Philip Jackson as Inspector Japp.

Adaptor: Clive Exton Director: Edward Bennett Cast: Gabrielle Blunt as Mrs Pierce Christopher Brown as a golfer Bob Bryan as a barman Barrie Cookson as Dr Brett John Cording as Inspector Jameson Nicholas Delve as Freddie James Faulkner as Major Eustace Juliette Mole as Jane Plenderleith Ruskin Moya as a singer Beccy Wright as a maid David Yelland as Charles Laverton-West The adaptation is faithful to the original story and the only two deviations from the original story were the addition of Captain Hastings and replacing Poirot's butler George by Miss Lemon.

Adaptors: David Reid, Clive Exton Director: Edward Bennett Cast: Guy Scantlebury as Reggie Carrington Albert Welling as Carlile Phillip Manikum as a Sergeant Carmen du Sautoy as Joanna Vanderlyn John Stride as Tommy Mayfield Ciaran Madden as Lady Mayfield Phyllida Law as Lady Carrington John Carson as Sir George Carrington This version differs from the story in that the altered aeroplane plans are for the "Mayfield Kestrel" fighter plane (a Supermarine Spitfire) instead of a bomber; Captain Hastings, Chief Inspector Jap and Miss Lemon were added.

Also, he was being blackmailed because he had sold howitzers to the Japanese-and gives a (faked) metal alloy formula of the fighter in return for the record of his sale; in comic relief Hastings and Poirot "borrow" a police car to chase Vanderlyn to the German ambassador's home; Inspector Japp fails to find the missing plans; Carrington is a politician instead of a RAF officer; Thomas Mayfield is an arms maker instead of a possible prime minister; and the involvement of Reggie Carrington and Leonie the maid does not take place.

Adaptor: Anthony Horowitz Director: Brian Farnham Cast: Tushka Bergen as Susan Cardwell Jon Croft as Lawrence Iain Cuthbertson as Gervase Chevenix Emma Fielding as Ruth Chevenix James Greene as Snell Richard Lintern as John Lake Jeremy Northam as Hugo Trent John Rolfe as a Registrar Fiona Walker as Miss Lingard Zena Walker as Vanda Chevenix Derek Smee as an Auctioneer The adaptation is faithful to the original story, but there are a few changes: Triangle at Rhodes was filmed for television in 1989 with David Suchet as Poirot, and first broadcast on February 12 that year as the sixth episode of series one.

Adaptor: Stephen Wakelam Director: Renny Rye Cast: Yannis Hatziyannis as the Purser Tilemanos Emanuel as a Customs Officer Jon Cartwright as Commander Chantry Dimitri Andreas as the Greek cashier Anthony Benson as Stelton Georgia Dervis as a Greek Girl Angela Down as Marjorie Gold Al Fiorentini as the police inspector Stephen Gressieux as an Italian policeman Timothy Kightley as Major Barnes Annie Lambert as Valentine Chantry George Little as Dicker Frances Low as Pamela Lyle Patrick Monckton as the hotel manager Peter Settelen as Douglas Gold The adaptation is faithful to the original story, and the only change is adding an attempt by Rhodes police to keep Poirot on the island when he finished his vacation and went back home because they thought he was a spy which is why he was not present at the hotel when Valentine Chantry was killed so he could not see Tony Chantry put a bottle of poison in Gold's pocket.

As well as being a talented artist, Macartney was an archaeologist and accompanied the Mallowans on many of their expeditions at this time and his shy personality was later recounted by Christie in her 1946 short volume of autobiography Come, Tell Me How You Live.