Hark! The 87th Precinct Podcast (hark87podcast)

Hark! It's an 87th Precinct Podcast bonus episode!

Merry christmas and happy holidays to you all. This is the bonus episode to accompany our look at McBain's comic tour-de-force Fat Ollie's Book. We go through some contemporary reviews (forgot to do them in the main episode - sorry!), then take the opportunity to explore the year 2002, even the book was published in '03, and in particular the Christmas music charts. It's our Christmas Office Party!

Thanks for keeping along on the journey with us this year. Only three more books to go!

Fare Thee Well.

Hark! It's an 87th Precinct Podcast.

It's 2004 and we're finally examining the book that we named the podcast after... HARK! Our old frenemy, The Deaf Man, is back and this time his scheme is more baffling than ever. We dig into this, the penultimate entry in the canon. Nearly there, folks!

We outline some of the events in 2004 and you can, of course, join us in the bonus episode for more from that year. Join us soon for the FINAL book in the series, Fiddlers.

Fare thee well.

Hark! It's an 87th Precinct podcast.

It's 2002/03 and Ed McBain has written probably the most overtly comic novel in the entire series of the 87th Precinct. Follow us as we tag along with Fat Ollie Weeks to see if he can find (a) a murderer, (b) his book and (c) love and redemption?

Oh, we forgot to look at the contemporary reviews of the book in this episode, so watch out for them in our Christmassy Bonus Episode coming soon. Then it's onto book 53, The Frumious Bandersnatch. 

Fare Thee Well.

Hark! It's an 87th Precinct Podcast bonus episode!

This is the bonus for our show all about the 54th (of 55!) novel in the series, Hark!

As usual we take a look at the cover designs for the book then settle back into the usual nonsense from the year of publication - in this case it's 2004. Prepare yourself for the Dave Mathews Band, Look and Read and some sequels. 

See you soon for the concluding story in the series - FIDDLERS.

Fare thee well.

Hark! It's an 87th Precinct Podcast Bonus episode!

This is the bonus episode accompanying our look at The Frumious Bandersnatch. You know the drill by now... we look at the book cover designs from the States, the UK and around the world then dig into the music, film and TV of the period of the book's writing/publication. 

We've not got many more of these to do as we're onto Book 54 of 55 soon. Thanks for listening!

Fare thee well.

Hark! It's an 87th Precinct bonus extra minipod!

Before we approach the final book in the official series of the 87th Precinct, we need to divert down a side-track to look at the book TRANSGRESSIONS - ten novellas selected and edited by Ed McBain. The book includes a novella from the author, set in the 87th Precinct, called Merely Hate, so we can't ignore it.

In this brief episode Paul will outline the other authors in the book and a little about this short(-ish) story, whilst you wait for us to bring you our last official episodes! 

Until then, 

Fare Thee Well.

Hark! It's an 87th Precinct Podcast bonus episode!

In fact, it's the last ever bonus episode. And everything went fine, yessir, no technical hitches or anything (*nervously runs finger around collar, eyes darting about the room*). 

We explore as always the original UK and US covers of the books and those of our own editions and some international versions before getting into the films, television and music from the year of release - in this case, 2005. Paul, Morgan and Stevo have made their picks from the year as well. Sort of.

See you soon for a concluding episode looking back at our scores and reflecting on the series - thanks for sticking with us.

Fare thee well!

Hark! It's an 87th Precinct bonus mini-episode.

In 2003 the BBC ran a writing competition and amongst the eight 'famous' authors taking part was Mr McBain himself. After generating a short-story for the competition entrants to complete, the authors also wrote their own end to the tale and so we get an extra little slice of the 87th Precinct to enjoy.

Click on the links here for the archived BBC website and the PDF of the complete tale.

See you soon for Book 54 - Hark!

Fare thee well.

Hark! It's an 87th Precinct Podcast.

This is our show all about 2004's book, The Frumious Bandersnatch. McBain once again takes on the creative industries and the squad's first kidnapping since King's Ransom. Is the author eating his cake and having it too, with how he discusses the difficult topics in the book? 

Featuring our first ever live Musical Illustration, we try and get across our feelings over this entry to the canon. 

We'll back soon for book number 54 - our namesake: Hark!

Fare thee well.

Hark! It's an 87th Precinct Podcast. In fact, it's the last (except our bonus episode) of the main series of this podcast as we arrive at the final book in the saga of the boys of Grover Avenue. It's Fiddlers. The corpses are piling up and the squad have to figure out what links the killings, whilst navigating their own matters of love, loss and family.

Does McBain leave us on a high? Find out within as we investigate not only the book itself, but the other things released by McBain/Hunter during the final year of his life and after that. 

Thank you so much for sticking with us and keeping us motivated to do this project. We truly appreciate it. So, until the bonus episode arrives, we'll merely say...

Fare Thee Well!

Hark! It's an 87th Precinct Podcast.

So McBain took a year off in 1982, but in 1983 he returned to the precinct with Ice - a longer novel and one that is usually considered in the top tier of the series. Will we agree? It's a tale of murder, murder, murder, drugs and fraud (and murder). We catch up with the newly divorced Bert Kling and meet an old friend in Eileen Burke.

Find out what we think in this new episode which also takes in looming nuclear disaster, just to cheer you all up. Thanks to everyone who's contributed or commented. See you soon for the bonus episode and then onto book 37 - Lightning.

Fare thee well.

Hark! It's the 87th Precinct Podcast!

We're back, after a slightly longer than usual break, with a look at the 49th book of the series - the last of the Twentieth Century - The Big Bad City. Otherwise known as Nuns and Cookies? We speculate on the relevance of the title, McBain's approach to writing about popular music as well as looking what the author was up to and what was going on in the world in 1999.

Join us soon for the bonus episode, then it's onto the year 2000 and book number 50 - THE LAST DANCE! Thanks for listening.

Fare thee well.

Hark! It's an 87th Precinct podcast mini-episode.

This is a little bonus for you all whilst we're still getting sorted ready to tackle Nocturne, the next 'main' book in the series. It gives me an opportunity to tell you all about the TV Guide exclusive 87th Precinct story Reruns. Meyer and Carella are dealing with a burglary at an actor's apartment. Who are all these people taking his stuff to the pawn-shops?

I also answer a listener question all about Ed McBain's working habits - where and when did he write? If you'd like to ask us something please use 'Hark87Podcast' on most social things or email us.

Fare thee well.

 

Hark! It's an 87th Precinct Podcast bonus episode.

Join us as we dip nose-deep into our varying copies of McBain's 1983 epic, ICE as well as exploring the original book cover designs for the UK and US releases. Then we drift into our usual look at music, movies and TV and proffer some personal picks from the year. Apologies for minimal McBain content in these current Bonus episodes, but they're intended as a nice distraction for us, as much as you, during the rather bizarre period in which they're being recorded.

See you all soon for 'Lightning'. Fare thee well.

Hark! It's an 87th Precinct Podcast.

This is the podcast all about 1980's spooktacular story, Ghosts. Has McBain gone mad or is he just showing off to Stephen King? Find out as we follow along as Carella hooks up with a Medium whilst investigating two deaths at an apartment block. Poor old Steve is about to have one of the weirdest Christmases ever.

This is our first podcast recording done 'remotely' and we hope it sounds okay. Learned a few lessons whilst doing it, but at least we know we can keep bringing you this stuff in this tricky time. We really hope you're all well and don't forget you can always get in touch with us via FB, Twitter, Instagram or Email.

See you soon for the bonus episode and then the next book in the series, HEAT.

Fare thee well.

Hark! It's an 87th Precinct Podcast Bonus Episode.

So, here's to Golden Days and Purple Nights! In this bonus we explore the origins of this phrase (let us know if you know anything about it) before we get into our usual book cover exploration, book-huffing and general tomfoolery.

Although Poison came out in early 1987, we're still focusing on 1986 in the episode (mainly so Paul can talk about his favourite film). See you soon for the next book in the series - TRICKS.

Fare thee well.

Hark! It's an 87th Precinct Podcast.

McBain returns, after a break from the series in 1996 for reasons we outline, to bring us this tale of terrible things happening at nighttime. This is a dense book with stories that are in turns tragic, comic, graphic and upsetting.

This is our first podcast 'together' since the pandemic hit and we're a little giddy with excitement, especially when Stevo gets hold of the 1997 TV Guide containing the story 'Reruns' (see our last extra episode!) and then Paul gives us a round-up of everything going on in McBain/Hunter's life during this period.

We'll return soon with our bonus episode, then it's onto book 49 - The Big Bad City.

Fare Thee Well.

Hark! It's an 87th Precinct Podcast.

We've reached book 44 and the year 1992 and McBain's offering for the year is KISS. Courtroom drama, a triangle of distrust and betrayal and a few digs at the real world. Is McBain back to his best with Kiss? Find out what we think in this episode! We also look at a whole bunch of other Hunter/McBain/Pseudonymous projects that emerge in 1992 and make fun of Dan Quayle along the way. Join us soon for our bonus episode and then after that we'll be back with MISCHIEF. Fare thee well.

Hark! It's an 87th Precinct podcast bonus episode.

This is the bonus attached to our review of Book 47 - the theatrical whirlwind that is 'Romance'. As usual this episode takes in the original book cover designs in the UK and US with some international editions thrown in for good measure, before we did into the Movies, TV and Music of 1995 and offer up our own pick.

Stay tuned for a TWIST ENDING! Line of Duty's got nothing on us! See you soon for Nocturne!

Fare thee well.

Hark! It's an 87th Precinct Podcast special edition.

Joining Paul for this interview is author and professor of English, Erin MacDonald. Erin wrote the essential guide to Evan Hunter's many works, "Ed McBain/Evan Hunter - A Literary Companion", which was published in 2012, and has just completed her new companion piece to the works of Ian Rankin, "Ian Rankin - A Companion to the Mystery Fiction", both available from McFarland.

We've been trying to get hold of Erin for a while, so we're thrilled to have had a chance to chat to her about her books and her research process and some of the things that Rankin and McBain have in common. Hope you enjoy this. Find Erin's books in physical and digital format where you'd normally go (but support indie booksellers where possible!) and you can find Erin's own website here.

Fare thee well.

Hark! It's an 87th Precinct Podcast bonus episode.

This is the bonus material for our examination of 1997's 'Nocturne'. We look at an increasingly poor selection of book cover designs and then dig into what was in the cinema, on television and in the charts in the year it was released. As usual we then offer up our picks from the period as well.

See you soon for book 49 - The Big Bad City.

Fare Thee Well.

Hark! It's an 87th Precinct Podcast!

And we begin with an apology - no backup recording means Paul's mic is terribly distorted. Sorry, but you're going to have to suffer the Dalek delivery in this episode.

We're back in 1981 and what we posit is the start of a new 'season' of 87th Precinct adventures. It's hot. There's a corpse. There's betrayal. There's lust for revenge. There's a drugs bust. Everything is happening in this fascinating tale of trust destroyed in so many ways. We hope you enjoying our study of the many 'easter eggs' McBain has slipped into the book. Keep your ears open for a guest appearance from one of Stevo's cats and an old friend...

See you soon for the bonus episode and then we'll be back with ICE soon! Fare Thee Well.

Hark! It's an 87th Precinct Podcast.

We've arrived into 1987 - a year in which two 87th Precinct books appear - so we spend some of this episode explore McBain/Hunter's activities in 1986 to get us up to date. Then it's time to get stuck into Poison - a remarkable and quite harrowing character study - but is it genuine 87th Precinct material?

Paul also fills everyone in on the hidden true story in Evan Hunter's 1966 novel The Paper Dragon as well.

See you soon for the bonus episode and then the next book - Tricks. Fare thee well.

Hark! It's an 87th Precinct Podcast bonus episode.

Following on from our look at 1991's Widows, we explore 1991 in general. Eyes on music, cinema and TV as usual. We also spoil the ending of 'The Brittas Empire', so you've been warned. Of course we have our usual look at the original designs of the book covers and check out the editions we're reading from too.

Thanks for listening and see you soon for book 44 - Kiss.

Fare thee well.

Ho Ho Hark! It's an 87th Precinct Christmas party episode!

Whilst we're counting it as an official entry in the 87th Precinct books canon (book number 46), the Christmas miniature story And All Through The House is offered here out of sequence as our Christmas treat to you. We take a moment away from stuffing our faces with Turkey, Pigs in Blankets, Potatoes and Pudding to tell you all about the publication history of the book and also answer some listener questions and reflect on Christmasses past.

See you in the New Year for the rest of the season! Thanks for listening, getting involved and being part of the McBain fun over this bizarre year. Fare thee well!

Hark! It's an 87th Precinct Podcast.

1988 was untroubled by any McBain 87th Precinct books, so we're now in 1989 with the 41st entry into the series with Lullaby. Domestic murders, burglaries, city-wide drugs and gang warfare and therapists. It's all here. 

As usual, we mention a few key 1989 landmark moments and there's plenty going on in the life and near-death of the author as well. Then we get stuck into the book and explore some contemporary reviews.

Join us again next time for the bonus episode and then it's onto Book 42, Vespers.

Fare thee well.

Hark! It's an 87th Precinct Podcast.

Happy new year everyone. Join us on our January adventure through the 43rd book in McBain's series - the multi-crimed Widows. Bodies are piling up all over the city and Carella's family life is changed forever.

We take our usual look through some significant events of 1991 and then pick apart this somewhat schizophrenic novel. Spoilers ahoy, as always.

Thanks for listening and we'll see you again for the bonus episode and 'Kiss' soon.

Fare thee well.

Hark! It's an 87th Precinct podcast bonus episode.

The year is 2000. The millenium has ticked over and we're still not flying in personal rockets to the moon. However, we have finished reading the 50th novel in McBain's series, The Last Dance. As usual we look at the book covers of the UK and US editions, as well as some other international versions, then delve into the charts, movies and TV of the year to recall what life was like for us as we entered the future space year 2000!

We'll be back soon with our main episode on Book 51 - Money, Money, Money.

Fare thee well.

Hark! It's an 87th Precinct Podcast bonus episode.

Seen as we looked at 1986 in the last episode, we're catching back up to 1987 this time with a look at the TV, Music and Films that were around - including our personal picks from the year. Paul also reveals a family story about Dudley Moore!

We open with our usual look at the book covers from the original US and UK editions and those that we've got as well.

See you soon for LULLABY.

Hark! It's an 87th Precinct Podcast bonus episode.

Having slogged through the grim world of 2001's terrorism, money laundering and drugs in the 51st book of the series, we retire to our safe space of the bonus episode to take a look at the book cover designs and then our usual run down of the charts, movies and television of the period.

What were your favourite things of 2001? Let us know on the usual social media places.

Until next time - Fat Ollie's Book - we will say simply,

Fare Thee Well.

Hark! It's an 87th Precinct Podcast bonus episode.

Of course, we begin as usual with our look at the original US and UK book covers - and an international edition! Then we get stuck into a pretty self-indulgent look at 1992. We reach a watershed moment in the podcast, which Paul almost misses and then we talk about 'Gamesmaster' for too long.

Join us again soon for Ed McBain's Mischief (book 45) and more of this daftness for 1993.

Fare thee well.

Hark! It's an 87th Precinct podcast.

We've reached 1995. McBain has reached the 47th book in his long running series and he's decided that it's theatre-land's turn for a mystery. There's a lot more autobiographical and bibliographical referencing in this book than you might know and we lay out the author's own history with the stage as well as trying to get to grips with this play-within-a-book murder mystery.

Join us soon for our bonus episode and then onwards, to 1997, and book 48, Nocturne.

Fare thee well.

Hark! It's an 87th Precinct podcast bonus episode.

Following on from our main episode's examination of the satantic tale, Vespers, we explore the covers of the editions as they were originally issued in the US and UK - worthy of note now editions on both sides of the pond are coming from new publishers.

Then, of course, we dig into 1990. A new decade and a year we remember all too clearly. Music, Films, TV and our personal picks for the year. Thanks for joining and we'll see you again soon for book 43 - Widows.

Fare thee well.

Hark! It's an 87th Precinct Podcast.

Welcome to 2020 everyone. Now that that's out of the way, let's go back to 1977 and the grim slayings of Blind people on the streets of Isola and beyond. It's a busy time for Carella as he looks after a seeing-eye dog, has to fend off flirtatious approaches and get to grips with Freudian interpretation of dreams as they relate to the Vietnam war. All in a days work, etc.

We look at some contemporary reviews, explore a little of the world in 1977 and speculate on why McBain seems obsessed with British references in this book. See you soon for the bonus episode and we'll back in 1979 with book 33 - Calypso. Visit us on Twitter, Instagram or Ko-Fi. Please review and share wherever you can. Fare thee well.

Hark! It's an 87th Precinct podcast bonus episode.

1981. An alcoholic cop steps out of his car. He's reached the island. The place he could make a difference. He pulls his brown leather jacket close about him. Jim Bergerac has arrived.

In this episode we revel in our usual book cover review and huffing, the music, films and TV of 1981 and offer up our own personal choices of records and movies from the year for you. Stevo is called away on an urgent errand and a listener question inspires a interesting thought - can you create a jukebox to accompany the books, year by year?

We'll be back soon for book 36, ICE. Fare thee well.

Hark! It's an 87th Precinct podcast

It's the 21st century and Ed McBain has just released the 50th book in the 87th Precinct series. It's The Last Dance and we're back to the theatre again for a tangled tale of drugs, murders, intellectual property rights and homonyms.

Is it a worthy celebration for the 50th tale or a mess of bits and pieces? Find out what we think here. As usual our bonus episode looking at the year in more context will be along soon.

Fare Thee Well.

 

Hark! It's an 87th Precinct Podcast.

It's 2001 and, shortly before everything changed, McBain publishes his 51st novel in the series, which takes in drugs, money and international terrorism. It's strange to read back this story which feels so relevant to the period. A dense tome, populated by assassins, burglars, the secret service and much, much more - we try our best to tackle everything that goes on in this story.

Paul also offers up some info on another attempt to make the 87th Precinct into a TV series and we look at some contemporary reviews. Pop along for the bonus episode soon, then we'll be back with 2002's FAT OLLIE'S BOOK.

Fare thee well.

Hark! It's an 87th Precinct Podcast.

It's the second of the books in the series to come out in 1987 and this time McBain has firmly targeted the Halloween market with the 40th entry in the series. We try and unpack this bumper book of Halloween horrors - which is a new read for two of us. Also, listen out for a cameo appearance from Stevo's cats.

Paul also fills us in on some interesting info discovered whilst researching the dedicatee of the book and we take a quick look at other stuff going on in 1987 as well. Join us soon for the bonus episode and then book 41, Lullaby.

Fare thee well.

Hark! It's an 87th Precinct Bonus Episode.

Following on from our discussion of the dark and difficult book 'Lightning' we take our usual gander at the original book cover designs and then get stuck straight into as much 1984 ephemera as you can shake a stick at. We've reached a point in the series publication year where we actually remember a lot of things coming out, so apologies for the ongoing transition into a very specific nostalgia account!

We offer up our picks of 1984 movies and albums as well and Paul adds some important Quincy based clarity.

See you soon for Eight Black Horses. Fare thee well.

Hark! It's an 87th Precinct Podcast!

The year is 1993 and after last year's pretty straightforward offering (Kiss), Mr McBain brings us the exact opposite! Lots of story threads! Loads of cops! Hardly any Steve Carella! And.... THE DEAF MAN IS BACK.

Join us as we try and untangle this dense mix of torment, abandoment, murder, riots and music. Keep listening to hear extracts from contemporary reviews of the book and McBain's answers to a questionnaire from the period.

We'll be back soon with the bonus episode then we skip the christmas book (see our December episode!) and jump straight to book 47 - Romance.

Fare thee well.

Hark! It's an 87th Precinct Podcast.

We enter a new decade and McBain begins it in dark, despairing mode, with the story of a murdered priest, drugs, hitmen and recollections of confessions. We learn all about the folk to whom the book is dedicated, explore what was going on in McBain/Hunter's life in 1990 and look at some contemporary reviews of the book as well.

Keep your eyes open for our bonus episode soon, before we bring you a Christmas treat and then it's on to Book 43 - Widows.

Fare thee well.

Hark! It's an 87th Precinct podcast bonus episode.

Following our run-down of the Deaf Man's schemes in our main episode, we turn our attention to the designs of the original UK/US releases and Paul introduces a new fifth design into the scheme! Then prepare yourself for some epic book-huffing before settling into the 1985 nostalgia fest of music, movies, television and our personal picks from the year.

Thanks for joining us for these lockdown episodes. Hopefully we'll be face-to-face again before too long. Next book: Poison.

Fare Thee Well!

Hark! It's an 87th Precinct Podcast bonus episode.

This is the accompanying thingy for our main episode all about 1989's Lullaby - murder, guns and therapy. Such larks.

We begin by looking at the original releases of the book in the US and the UK, which is of interest as we see new publishers arrive and old publishers producing their last editions, plus a bonus edition of The Mugger as well. Then, as usual, we get stuck into 1989 in film, TV and music and proffer up our personal picks from the year.

Thanks for joining us. See you soon for Vespers. Fare thee well.

Hark! It's an 87th Precinct Podcast Bonus Episode.

We've looked into the 49th novel of the series, The Big Bad City, in our main episode so now it's time for our usual examination of the book covers of the original editions in the US and UK, as well as some other overseas versions. Then it's time to trawl through the music, movies and television of 1999 for some context of the period.

See you soon for Book 50 - The Last Dance.

Fare thee well.

Hark! It's an 87th Precinct Podcast.

This episode is all about the 37th book in the series - a brutal and dark tale of serial criminals. We discuss if this is McBain at his most difficult - violence against women, issues of race and much more. Along the way, we also discuss where Evan Hunter was in his career, including some of his notable failures (published and otherwise) and look again at his disgust at the success of Hill Street Blues.

We'll be back soon with our look at the original publication designs, our editions and more 1984 context in our bonus episode.

Fare thee well.

Hark! It's an 87th Precinct Podcast bonus episode!

Firstly - sorry, this goes on a bit and it also gets quite silly and pretty self-indulgent. What, a podcast self indulgent? Who'd have thought it, eh? However, we do explore the covers of the UK/US original editions of the 1979 novel CALYPSO and Stevo achieves a new world-huffing-speed record. There's lots and lots of chat about 1979 in music, films and television. Then everything goes really weird for a bit, then we stop.

Join us soon for the next book in the series, Ghosts. Fare thee well!

Hark! It's an 87th Precinct podcast. We're in 1985 and who better to come along to mark the halfway point of the decade but the 87th Precinct's nemesis, The Deaf Man? Making his fourth appearance in the series, he returns full of schemes and anger. How will the boys from Grover Avenue cope this time?

 

Along the way we discuss some key cultural, political and technological points from 1985. Paul offers his 'McCartney' theory for the book and we look at some contemporary reviews of the novel as well. As always, we appreciate any ratings, reviews or shares of the episode you can give us.

 

Next up is book 39 - Poison. Until then, fare thee well.

Hark! It's an 87th Precinct podcast bonus episode.

This is the bonus episode to accompany our look at 1993's Mischief. We take a look at the covers of the US and UK releases and also investigate an Italian and Japanese edition. Please smell along at home.

Then it's into our round up of 1993 in music, film and television and our personal picks from the year. Keep listening to hear Paul tell you all about two more Evan Hunter/McBain books he's read as well.

See you soon for book 47 (46 was the Christmas story!) - Romance.

Fare Thee Well.

Hark! It's an 87th Precinct Podcast.

It's a dark and tragic tale that Steve Carella finds himself investigating in 1975's Blood Relatives. This shocking story was adapted into the 1978 film Les Liens De Sang by Claude Chabrol, featuring Donald Sutherland in the Carella role. It's a scary and shocking tale.

We round out our discussion of the book by taking our usual run-down of things-from-the-year-that-we've-noticed for context, look at some contemporary reviews and what else Evan Hunter/Ed McBain was up to in print and in the theatre.

Join us soon for the bonus episode and we'll see you soon for the next book in the series - matrimonial bliss with Bert and Augusta in So Long As You Both Shall Live. Please rate and review and share wherever you can! Fare thee well.

Hark! It's an 87th Precinct podcast bonus episode.

As per usual, we follow up our main episode discussion (all about Blood Relatives) with our examination of the covers of the various original editions and the obligatory book-huffing test for our copies, before delving into the media of 1975 to provide context for the time in which the book was written. This time, we get quite silly. Marvel at Morgan's Alice Cooper enthusiasms, Gasp at Paul's impression of Oliver Reed and be wowed by Stevo's development of an entire new form of cinema!

We also look at the fantasy casting of Forensic specialist, Lt. Sam Grossman and for the next episode you need to start thinking about who you'll cast as Detective Bert Kling. Until then, Fare Thee Well.

Hark! It's an 87th Precinct podcast bonus episode.

We follow up our main episode's discussion of the 29th Book in the series, Bread, with our usual examination of the various editions of the original publication (and Paul does some Show & Tell for this!) and then delve deeper into the music, television and films of 1974, including some serious discussion on how the policy of OPEC might have affected the career of Perry Como.

Lastly, we sift through examples of those folk who've portrayed Detective Meyer Meyer on screen and who we could get to play him in our Fantasy Casting 87th Precinct series. Thank you for all your suggestions! Next time, we'll cast everyone's favourite lab guy, Lieutenant Sam Grossman.

See you soon for Book 30 - BLOOD RELATIVES. Fare thee well.

Hark! It's an 87th Precinct Podcast!

After book 28, the satirical Nixon-baiting Hail To The Chief, we're back on firmer procedural ground with 1974's Bread - a complex tale of arson, fraud, smuggling, violence and deprivation. Roger Grimm's warehouse of little wooden animals has burned down, but what has that got to do with Diamondback Developments? Readers will meet the 83rd Precinct's Detective 'Fat' Ollie Weeks for the first time. Get used to him folks, there's lots more of Ollie to come!

We also look at a few items of interest in 1974, find out what else Ed McBain/Evan Hunter was publishing and creating at the time and then get stuck into trying to follow the money. 

Join us soon for the bonus episode and we'll back soon for book number 30 - Blood Relatives. Fare thee well.

Hark! It's an 87th Precinct Bonus Podcast!

Hullo again - here we are with our usual extra-slice of McBain-ing, where we take our usual look at the publishing history and the front covers of the first editions of the book, in this case 1966's Eighty Million Eyes, as well as letting you know what we've been reading and, most importantly, how they smell. Stevo is at his most huffingly poetic in this.

We then tackle a listener question about formats for adapting the 87th Precinct and then jump back to investigate the film "Morgan: A Suitable Case For Treatment". All this and spy crocodiles too! 

Please rate, review and share, and then join us soon for the next book in the series, 1968's FUZZ. Until then - Fare Thee Well.

Hark! It's the 87th Precinct Podcast.

 Well, it's January 2019, but we want to drag you over the time-platters back to 1966 and the twenty-first entry into the 87th Precinct series, Eighty Million Eyes. The novel itself is made up of two intertwined 'novelettes' and we look at the publishing history of the stories in their original form and then explore some of the features that make up the published work. The on-screen death of a TV star sends Meyer and Carella into a Witness chasing frenzy and Kling is assigned guard duty. 

Before we get going, we explore the media, music, sport and politics of '66, including a discussion of the Miranda/Escobedo cases which will definitely come to be relevant as the series continues. We share some listener thoughts on the story, explore contemporary reviews and generally get dreamy over air-cushion based transport systems.

We're now hosted by PODBEAN, but hopefully you shouldn't experience any interruption of service. We'll be back soon with the accompanying bonus episode for this story and then the next story in the sequence is 1968's FUZZ. Happy New Year and Fare Thee Well!

Hark! It's an 87th Precinct Bonus Episode!

Welcome back to 1968 and Ed McBain's "FUZZ". In this episode we, of course, take our traditional look at the original covers of the UK and US editions, as well as the film tie-in cover, and discuss/huff our own rather battered copies of the book. Visit our Instagram for photos and more McBain content as well.

We get stuck into our delayed-from-the-main-episode Quiz of 1968, during which we're driven mad by the notion of the most exciting cross-over event in movie history! Be prepared for some of the finest celebrity impersonations you've ever heard. 

We also chat about taking the "Who Would You Cast In The 87th Precinct TV Series" questions to the next level, so get your thinking caps on and start to think about when you would want to set the show, before we start to look at each character and who we could pick to play them.

Remember, a bonus side-pod will be coming soon looking at the movie of FUZZ from 1972. Keep your eyes peeled and until then, Fare Thee Well.

www.ko-fi.com/hark87podcast

www.hark87podcast.blogspot.com

 

Hark! It's an 87th Precinct Podcast!

Even the most prolific writers need a year off, and so we've skipped past 1967 in our wait for the next 87th Precinct novel, and arrived in 1968 with "Fuzz". This book, one of the better known of the series, sees the return of the squad's nemesis, The Deaf Man!

In this episode we explore how McBain uses the real world of politics to inform the 87th Precinct, find out all about decoy cops and consider the weird decisions made when publishing American books in the U.K.. We skip the majority of the 'quiz of the year' this episode as there's so much to pack in, but fret not - we still manage to get caught up in the world of 'Carry On...' (the quiz will be in the bonus episode!)

Special mention must be made of Betamax Video Club and Paul's appearance talking about his favourite film, The Transformers: The Movie! Please do check it out. And on the subject of movies, Paul and a special guest will be bringing you a Side-pod all about the Burt Reynold's feature from 1972, Fuzz! Keep your eyes peeled for that. 

Thanks for joining us and we'll see you soon for the bonus episode, then book 23 - "Shotgun". Fare Thee Well!

* N.B.: some sound quality issues plague this episode. Our microphones were being naughty. Hopefully it won't affect your enjoyment too much.

Hark! It's an 87th Precinct Podcast!

It's celebration time for the eight-seven, because this is the twenty-fifth book in the series and McBain has invited ALL of the detectives to come along. Experience a night and a day in and around the precinct, with tales of murder, criminal damage, missing persons and dutch ghosts. You know, the usual party stuff. 

In this episode we forgo our usual examination of the year it was published (it's coming in the bonus episode though) and focus on this atypical example of the series, which has a lot going on in it. We examine other places it was published - Stevo does like to find out what was in Argosy magazine - and whether it's worth recommending to a friend. 

It you enjoy the show, please leave a review or rating, or pop over to www.ko-fi.com/hark87podcast to make a digital donation to the running of the show. Also, please visit https://crimereads.com/the-magic-of-ed-mcbains-87th-precinct/ to read Paul's article about the early series. We'll be back next month for book 26 - Sadie When She Died. Fare thee well!

Hark! It's an 87th Precinct Bonus Episode.

Well, here we are with our usual look at the book covers of the original US and UK editions of this 1971 story, followed by the now-displaced exploration of the year (music, movies, politics, infrastructure) for the benefit of all of you who can't wait to hear people trying to guess which "Carry On..." movie came out, again. Find the photos of the covers and other stuff at our Instagram feed: www.instagram.com/hark87podcast

We then move into exploring options for who we might cast as Detective Arthur Brown in our fantasy 87th Precinct TV series - thanks for your suggestions everyone! Next time, you need to be having a think about who you'd cast as the unluckiest cop in the precinct, Detective Bob O'Brien (first appearance: Lady Killer - 1958, Last appearance: Hark! - 2004). Drop us your thoughts at www.twitter.com/hark87podcast or www.facebook.com/hark87podcast or email us! See you soon for Sadie When She Died.

Fare thee well.

Hark! It's an 87th Precinct bonus episode!

We follow up our discussion about 1973's HAIL TO THE CHIEF with a bit of a quiz of the year in music and film, a look at the book covers of our and the original editions and then look at screen portrayals of Teddy Carella - with your fantastic suggestions for our Fantasy Casting under scrutiny.

Paul also discovers that Stevo and Morgan have some strangely specific knowledge of fast food retail outlet origins in the UK. It has almost no relevance to anything else. Check out www.instagram.com/hark87podcast for supporting photographs and content.

See you soon for Book number 29 - Ed McBain's BREAD.

Fare thee well.

Hark! It's an 87th Precinct Podcast!

Here we are, still in 1973, but sat next to Ed McBain, examining his typewriter which surely took some beating as he punched out the text of his Nixon-hating Gang-Warfare Allegory, HAIL TO THE CHIEF. Join us as we spot the parallels (based on our rather limited knowledge of the politics of the US in the early 70s...) and discuss this most violent and unusual 87th Precinct novel.

Also: we're over half-way through the series! If you'd like to get us a present as a reward, then head to https://ko-fi.com/hark87podcast and buy us a digital coffee for $3. It'll help us with the costs of keeping going. Otherwise, please rate and review on your podcast app. We'd very much appreciate it. 

See you soon for the bonus episode and then for the podcast about book 29, BREAD. Fare Thee Well.

Hark! It's an 87th Precinct Bonus Episode.

We follow up our examination of the twenty-fourth 87th Precinct book with our usual run-down of the original editions as released in the US and UK and then we turn our attention to the important business of 'Casting The Eight-Seven' - this time we look at the listener suggestions for who could play Lieutenant Peter Byrnes. For the next episode we'd like you to get thinking about who you'd cast as the star of Jigsaw - Detective Arthur Brown.

Remember to check our Instagram and other social feeds to find the images of book covers and the like to illustrate what we're talking about in these episodes. Fare Thee Well!

Hark! It's an 87th Precinct Podcast.

Well, we've done it everyone - we've made it to the Seventies and the first book of that decade is JIGSAW - Detective Arthur Brown is on a quest to locate all the pieces of a sliced-up photograph and ends up with a pile of dead bodies along the way, as well as the loss of his trousers.

A tricky tale to read with modern eyes in parts, thrill to the amazing sound of three polite, liberal men stumbling around issues of race, sexuality and sex as expressed by McBain through the author's voice and the voice of the characters. There are big social issues at play and it's interesting to see how effective the book is/isn't at handling them from today's perspective.

Along the way we explore the stuff going on in 1970, the adaptations of the story (Hello Lt. Columbo!) and find out about some fantastic real-world 'easter eggs' McBain slipped into the book. Hope you enjoy this - bonus episode soon! Please RATE and REVIEW and SHARE wherever and whenever you can. 

See you soon for "Hail, Hail The Gang's All Here". Fare thee well.

Hark! It's an 87th Precinct podcast bonus episode.

Here we are, off the back of our review of the 27th book in the series, Let's Hear It For The Deaf Man, with our usual blend of book cover and design chat, the great quiz of '73 (first bit of the year) and most importantly - Fantasy Casting for THE DEAF MAN! Thanks so much for all your contributions. Apologies to Cary Elwes for my terrible pronunciation of his name!

Next time you need to think about who you'd cast as our central civilian female character, Teddy Carella!

See you next time for HAIL TO THE CHIEF. Fare thee well!

Hark! It's an 87th Precinct Podcast!

It's 1973 and The Deaf Man is back to taunt the cops of the 87th Precinct and to confirm his status as Steve Carella's nemesis. Join us for our discussion of this novel which takes in all three of the story threads, the relationship of the book to the film Fuzz, its place in Evan Hunter's work for the year and how it influences the lives of some of the characters to come. We explore some contemporary reviews of the book as well, with a mature and grown-up approach...

Remember to rate and review the podcast wherever you can and if you want to drop us a small donation, you can do so via www.ko-fi.com/hark87podcast - it doesn't cost us much to run the show, but every little helps. 

We'll see you soon for the bonus episode (book covers, quiz and who to cast as The Deaf Man) and then onwards for the second 87th Precinct book of 1973, Hail To The Chief. Fare Thee Well.

HARK! It's an 87th Precinct bonus podcast.

Learn everything about 1972, the year in which the 26th book in the 87th Precinct series was published, in our bonus episode. Albums, Singles, Films, TV... and we do manage to talk about Ed McBain and the books as well. 

We investigate our copies of the book and look at the original editions - find everything on our Instagram page - and decide on who we're putting forward for our fantasy-casting of the unluckiest cop in the squad - Detective Bob O'Brien. Find out who we set our casting sights on for the next episode as well. There's a bit of history of the NYPD, a bonus squeak from a cat called Sally and then we're done! See you soon for Book Number 27! 

Fare Thee Well.

H*A*R*K It's an 87th Precinct podcast!

The year is 1972 and Gerald Fletcher has just come home to find his wife eviscerated on the bedroom floor and his apartment burglarised. Luckily the police catch the burglar. Case solved? Well, not quite. Carella becomes Columbo in this tale of identity, betrayal, lost and found (and lost again) loves at Christmas in the Eight-Seven. [This episode marked as 'Explicit' due to some of the words taken from this book...]

Paul, Morgan and Stevo discuss the book and take a look at what Evan Hunter was up to in 1972 in other areas and we relate some contemporary reviews of the novel as well. Our contextual chat about the year can be found in the upcoming bonus episode!

Thanks for your continued support. Please rate, review, listen and share. We love to get your contributions and comments. Also, if you're wondering what we're giggling about and saying the word "Neasden" for, please watch this Youtube clip of Peter Cook and Dudley Moore.

We'll see you again soon for the return of the 87th Precinct's arch-nemesis in "Let's Hear It For The Deaf Man". Fare Thee Well.

Hark! It's an 87th Precinct Podcast

The cops of the Eight-Seven are often dealing with some pretty messy crimes and this book, Shotgun, has one of the messiest. Join Carella, Kling, Meyer and Hawes as they tackle two shootings and a stabbing, with plenty of hep-cat beat poetry thrown in along the way. There's also a nice reward for the series reader here, as book 19, He Who Hesitates, bleeds into the story.

Alongside our usual discussion of 1969 in music, film, TV and politics, we have an examination of the gun-permit laws in NYC now and then, learn the word 'Scofflaw' and get visited by possibly two ghosts. There's a fair bit of British Ephemera (TM) here - ask us if you want clarification on our TWITTER page, or email us at hark87podcast@gmail.com

You can find our KO-FI page for one-off contributions at www.ko-fi.com/hark87podcast - thanks to everyone who's sent us something so far!

Join us in the bonus episode for our look at the original editions and our book covers, as well as part one of "Casting The 87th Precinct" where we explore the WHEN of the story settings. Fare thee well!

 

Hark! It's an 87th Precinct bonus episode.

We're back for our follow-up to the main podcast all about the gruesome story from 1969, Shotgun. As always, we kick off with a look at our editions, including a near lethal huffing for Stevo, and then reveal the original UK and US designs for the book and the mysterious Canadian Star Weekly release. Find these photos on our Instagram feed here.

Then we get stuck into the main business of the day - Casting the Fantasy 87th Precinct series - Phase One: WHEN? Paul reveals some of the thoughts of you, our listeners, and we discuss the technology and changes that might limit or affect when we'd set our version of an 87th Precinct TV series. Let us know what you think of our idea. Also, get your thinking lederhosen and start to ponder who you'd cast to play boss-of-the-detectives, Lieutenant Peter Byrnes.

See you soon for 'JIGSAW'. Fare thee well.  

Hark! It's an 87th Precinct Bonus Episode!

This is the bonus episode for book 31, So Long As You Both Shall Live - Bert and Augusta are married. Happiness from hereon in then? Ah well. Never mind. At least we can relax and take our usual look at the book covers for the original and our editions of the story - including a book-huffing of an early UK edition which nearly takes the top of Stevo's head off. 

After that we plummet into 1976 trivia - music, movies and more and then onwards we march to the fantasy casting of Detective Bert Kling himself! Thanks as always for your suggestions and contributions to the episode. Next time - it's Stool Pigeon casting time - who will you pick for either/both of Daniel Nelson or Fats Donner? Let us know and we'll see you soon for Book 32 - Long Time No See!

Fare Thee Well.

Hark! It's an 87th Precinct Podcast.

It's 1976, it's Bert Kling and Augusta Blair's wedding day and nothing can surely trouble the boys of the eight-seven on such a happy occassion? Well, maybe a scalpel wielding kidnapper might. But, look on the bright side, at least Fat Ollie Weeks is here to help Carella and company find Mrs.Kling and restore her to the loving arms of Bertram.

We take our usual looks at what else Evan Hunter was up to at the time, do a bit of a look at 1976 in broad terms and encourage you also to visit Round The Archives to hear Paul's contribution about the 87th Precinct TV series in their podcast and you might also want to look up the new book Sticking It To The Man, as recommended on the show.

Join us soon for our bonus episode and then it's onwards to book 32 - Long Time No See. Fare Thee Well!

Hark! It's an 87th Precinct podcast.

Book 33 in the sage takes up to the end of the 1970s. It's 1979 and Calypso singer King George Chadderton has been shot. So has his manager. And a wannabe singer. And a Locksmith. And things aren't looking too good for that dog either. Gulp. Carella and Meyer try to unravel this mystery across many precincts.

In this episode we have a look around the world of 1979, explore mythological influences on the story and Paul becomes crippled by incredulity at the concept of a Calypso album by someone you wouldn't expect. Join us in the bonus episode soon for book covers and more.

We'll be back soon with book number 34 - Ghosts. See you then and Fare Thee Well.

Hark! It's an 87th Precinct podcast Mini-pod.

To fill a gap in our main schedule, Paul presents this quick run-through of the various pseudonyms/name changes used by Evan Hunter throughout his life. This is based in part on some of the research currently being done for the proposed 87th Precinct book that's being worked on at the moment. Hope you find this little stop-gap interesting - let us know your thoughts on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram or email us at Hark87Podcast@gmail.com. 

Fare Thee Well.

Hark! It's a remote-recorded 87th Precinct Bonus Episode.

Are you ready for the world's first ever round of remote-recorded book-huffing? Will Morgan's schnozz rise to the challenge? Will Paul manage to get through his intro without saying the word 'Ghoosts'? Will Stevo ever remember the name of that Roxy Music album? All these questions - and more - are answered in our bonus episode to our podcast about the book GHOSTS - McBain's exercise in spooky tale-telling from 1980.

During the current situation (pandemic lockdown, future listeners) these bonus episodes are likely to be a bit of a looser affair, although we promise to up the McBain content as much as possible! Remember, we love to answer queries and questions, so send them along and don't forget to visit www.instagram.com/hark87podcast to see the book covers we're discussing.

See you soon for HEAT. Fare thee well.

Hark! It's an 87th Precinct side-pod!

Happy New Year everyone. Thanks for joining us again in 2020. To kick things off, whilst the regular team are still off on holiday, here's a special episode 'completing the set' of the early Evan Hunter juvenile fiction novels for the Winston Science Fiction range. It's the first of those stories, 1952's Find The Feathered Serpent - a tale of time machines, vikings and the hunt for a Mayan god.

Returning to discuss this book is author Garry Abbott (find his books here), Paul's brother. As you can probably hear on this episode, it was taped over Christmas. A long drive and a spot of Cava is the excuse for Paul's poorly-working-brain. Still, we dig into the implausibilities of this already implausible tale, identify a McBain-style of writing in gestation and also take a look at some British and US television and music from the time the book was published.

We'll be back soon with our main episodes and possibly some more bonus material to keep you ticking over. Thanks for staying on the McBain path with us. Fare thee well.

Hark! It's an 87th Precinct podcast bonus episode.

This is our bonus episode for book 32 in the series, a tale of war-trauma, multiple slayings and a possibly rabid dog. As usual we begin with our look at the book covers of the original UK and US releases and our own editions, before getting stuck into some more charts and trivia from 1977.

We're also looking at a new way to carry on our 'Fantasy Casting' for an 87th Precinct TV series, so keep watching FB/Instagram/Twitter for news on that. Thanks everyone for contributing. Join us again soon for book 33 in the series, Calypso.

Fare thee well.

 

Hark! It's an 87th Precinct extra-special bonus side-pod podcast!

Inspired by a query about a particular magazine from the 1970s by the author Sarah Weinman on Twitter, I fell down a research rabbit-hole and have emerged clutching a whole bunch of information about the various attempts at 'spinning-off' from the 87th Precinct.

The early sixties saw the emergence of Ed McBain's Mystery Book and the 87th Precinct comic and the seventies brought us Ed McBain's 87th Precinct Mystery Magazine. Who brought these to life, how long did they last, who contributed? All questions are, sort of, answered (or at least speculated on) in this solo-podcast from series host, Paul Abbott.

If you like the show, please consider rating & reviewing it on your podcast app, and telling friends who you think would like the show. The usual format is a three-way discussion about each book in the series. All the back-episodes are still available, including bonus interviews and reviews of adaptations and other related McBain stuff. 

Hope you enjoy this episode as much as I enjoyed researching it. Fare thee well!

Hark! It's an 87th Precinct Podcast bonus stopgap, er, thing...

Just so you don't go mad waiting to hear Paul's dulcet tones again, here's a short episode that takes a quick trek around his bookshelves looking at collections of short-stories he loves and then an examination of Ed McBain/Evan Hunter's story collections in a little more detail. We appreciate it's taken a little longer than usual to get round to the next 87th Precinct book, so this is offered by way of a little stopgap.

Featured in this episode particularly are the books THE RETURN OF MR CAMPION, written by Margery Allingham and published by Agora Books - a fine collection and THE DIMENSION SCALES by Garry Abbott. 

We'll see you soon for Let's Hear It For The Deaf Man. Fare Thee Well.

Hark! It's an 87th Precinct Podcast side-pod!

Paul is joined in this episode by old friend and this podcast's first ever guest, illustrator Adam Paxman. They're looking at Appointment on Mars, the S.A.Lombino story for the television anthology series, Tales of Tomorrow in 1952. This was Lombino/Hunter/McBain's first credited piece of television and draws heavily on his skills as a writer of science-fiction short stories.

Along the way we discuss the cast, the production, the high quality of C H Maslan carpets and Adam tells an unexpected tale about a duck. So step into your one-piece space overall, get out your space lump-hammer and be prepared to learn all about what can go wrong when you send a Pilot, A Scientist and An Idiot to Mars.

Fare thee well! Adam Paxman's portfolio is online here: http://www.adampaxman.com/ and you can find the full Appointment on Mars episode on Archive.org.

If you'd like to contribute to the running of the show, please buy us a digital coffee at www.ko-fi.com/hark87podcast - thanks!

Hark! It's an 87th Precinct podcast bonus Christmas episode!

Many festive greetings unto you and yours from us and ours. We've finally taken the plunge and delved into the world of Barney Miller, as so many of you suggested that it seems very much like McBain's 87th Precinct tales. And what better episode to watch than Series 3, Episode 10 - Christmas Story. Broadcast over the holidays in 1976, this was on TV between the last book we looked at (So Long As You Both Shall Live) and the next one we'll do (Long Time No See). Sgt Yemana has some doubts about his date, Detective Fish has to get into the big red suit, Wojo helps a man survive a nervous breakdown and Detective Harris gets his presents from the drug-store. There's all sorts going on at the 12th Precinct on Christmas Eve, so here's what Paul, Morgan and Stevo think about it.

We also look at the Christmas Number 1s of 1976 and, of course, discuss that most festive of TV shows, Baywatch Nights. Join us again for our regular episodes in the New Year, but keep an eye open for more Bonus Content to keep you ticking over until then. Visit www.ko-fi.com/hark87podcast if you feel like dropping us a present! Fare thee well.

IGNITION! It's an 87th Precinct Side-Pod.

Strap on your heavy metal space boots, take a sip from your feeding tube and hail that space taxi - we're launching into orbit and beyond in this special edition all about the Richard Marsten science-fiction book Rocket To Luna.

Another story in the Winston Science Fiction range (as with Danger: Dinosaurs), Rocket To Luna sees Marsten/Hunter speculate on what could happen on the first trip to the moon in the far off year of 1983, imagine what it would be like to be seventeen and in space and provide a stark warning about the hazards of poor riveting.

To discuss whether the story is riveting or not is returning guest, Garry Abbott, who earns his return visit by virtue of his own works as a writer of speculative fiction and sci-fi. Find Garry's author page here. Join us to hear all about this book, all about a particular film and discover why Paul wasn't allowed to go into space in the eighties himself. Until next time, Fare Thee Well.

Hark! It's an 87th Precinct Sidepod!

In this episode, Paul is joined by fan-of-Burt-Reynolds and podcaster (in that order?), John Rain. You can find info about John's fantastic James Bond and Michael Caine podcast, SMERSHPOD through the Twitter page and keep an eye open for John's new podcast, All Rather Mysterious, which aims to solve the mysteries of the past, in the presence of comedians Eleanor Morton and David Reed.

John and Paul got together to chat through the 1972 film version of Ed McBain's 1968 book, Fuzz (find that podcast using this link!) which finds the 87th Precinct now mysteriously in the real world, in Boston and features Burt Reynolds as Steve Carella, Raquel Welch as Eileen McHenry (think Eileen Burke, eight-seven fans!), Tom Skerritt as Bert Kling and many more of the squad - not to mention Yul Brynner as The Deaf Man. We contemplate why the film never got a sequel, harassment in the workplace, whether McBain wrote mucky books and whether Dom DeLuise should have been in the film. Warning: Contains a couple of rude bits (the podcast, not the film). 

The film was adapted by Evan Hunter himself and was directed by Richard A. Colla (Battlestar Galactica, Ironside).

If you've seen the film, let us know what you think at our Twitter or FB page and if you fancy dropping us the price of a digital coffee, pop to KOFI and drop some coins in the jar. Anything we get will go back into the podcast.

**Hark! It's an 87th Precinct Podcast Solo Episode!** Whilst we get organised for our next podcast proper (Ed McBain's "The Heckler") we've provided this little stopgap, with a look back over the books we've covered that were released in the 1950s. During this solo excursion, Paul recaps the books, the adaptations, who's who in the squadroom and tells you all about K.E.N.N.E.T.H., our scoring computer, via some newly discovered archive evidence. Detective Steve Carella pops by as well. Please continue to get involved via Twitter (@Hark87Podcast), email (Hark87Podcast@gmail.com) and via the comments and reviews on the podcast platforms. We really appreciate your listening to our podcast and look forward to a great 2018 sharing our Ed McBain love with you all. (Additional Script: Rob Charnock. Additional music provided under Creative Commons from freesfx.com)

The theme-tune for our Podcast. Inspired by Morton Stevens iconic theme for the TV series based on the books, our tune takes a decidely surf-y turn, for no real reason.

Hark! It's an 87th Precinct Extra Special Bonus Podcast! We're delighted to be able to bring you this short extra episode, which features a discussion with radio presenter, James Naughtie, who is a well-known voice to millions in the UK, as presenter of the fantastic show, [Bookclub](https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b006s5sf), on BBC Radio 4 (also available as a podcast), the former presenter of the flagship morning news programme, Today, amongst other duties as a special correspondent. He's also a writer himself, having written history and music books, as well as thriller stories. During the recent Liverpool Literary Festival, James was presenting an episode of Bookclub and hosting other talks, and having heard about his love for McBain in an article for the [Radio Times](https://www.radiotimes.com/news/2018-06-03/radio-4s-bookclub-host-james-naughtie-reveals-his-guilty-reading-pleasures/), we contacted him and he kindly and enthusiastically agreed to meet up and have a chat. Paul went along with his trusty portable recorder and spoke to this broadcasting legend about his love for McBain, Wodehouse, Simenon and much more - this is a conversation about love for reading, love for the worlds authors can create and James also tells us about his own encounter with Evan Hunter. We hope you enjoy this. Please share, rate and review us - it all helps us to reach a wider audience and if you feel inclined to donate the price of a digital coffee towards the running of the show, you can do so at www.ko-fi-com/hark87podcast. Thanks for listening - see you soon for our next episode about Ed McBain's "DOLL". Fare thee well.

**Hark! It's an 87th Precinct Extra Special Bonus Podcast!** We're absolutely thrilled to be bringing you this podcast - an interview with publisher and owner of the Mysterious Bookshop, Otto Penzler. Otto was a long time close friend and confidante to Evan Hunter and kindly agreed to meet up with Paul when he was recently in New York, to chat about their relationship and tell us more about what Hunter was like as a person. During the conversation, we discuss how much Evan's background may have bled into his books, the success of Evan Hunter vs the longevity of the 87th Precinct, who else fans of the 87th Precinct should be reading and Otto shares some personal recollections of a man who, it seems, was intense, honest, friendly, combative, funny and talented. We can't thank Otto enough for being so open with us and agreeing to give up some of his working time to talk to us. Reward him by visiting the [Mysterious Bookshop](http://www.mysteriousbookshop.com/) next time you're in New York, or exploring the [Mysterious Press](http://mysteriouspress.com/) to find some amazing editions of classic authors. Thanks for listening. Please rate, review and share. We'd love as many people as possible to hear this great conversation. Visit us at [our blog](http://www.hark87podcast.blogspot.com/) and buy us a coffee at [Ko-Fi](http://www.ko-fi.com/harkpodcast/) . Fare Thee Well!

**Welcome to Hark! The 87th Precinct Podcast.** This is our first podcast looking at Cop Hater (1956). Paul, Morgan and Stephen look at Ed McBain's background, what was going on in 1956 and start to set the scene for the book. Finally, we get into some detail about the book. This episode is probably longer than we intend for most of them, but as this is Book One and we're still talking about the genesis and background for the series, well, there you go. *N.B. This was originally released as two seperate episodes, which have now been combined into this one MEGA-EPISODE!*

Hark! It’s the 87th Precinct Podcast! …and it’s our birthday! A year since we began putting the podcast together. Have some cake! It was about 58 years ago when Ed McBain’s “King’s Ransom” was released, the tenth of the 87th Precinct mysteries, and the last to be published in the 1950s. In this episode we look at McBain’s moral compass, propose a theory about P G Wodehouse and contemplate the voice of grief-weasel Adrian Score. It’s such a good book, we’re not even that silly! Don’t worry, because there’s lots more stuff to come. Thanks for listening. Please take the time to like/rate/review on whatever podcast app you use, as it will really help us to extend the reach of our McBain fandom. See you soon for “Give The Boys A Great Big Hand”

**Hark! It's the 87th Precinct Podcast Bonus Episode!** Join in again with our first birthday party, as we muse on Party Blowers, bakelite telephones and unidentified oscillators, the 87th Precinct TV series episode "King's Ransom" and answer some listener questions and queries. We discuss whether there should be a British novelisation of a Tollywood version of a Bollywood version of a Japanese Version of this American book. Everyone's favourite peculiarly-accented ghost, Groff Conklin, pops by to give us some extra information! Right-ho - we'll be back soon for "Give The Boys A Great Big Hand"! Please like, rate and review wherever you get your podcasts!

**Hark! It's the 87th Precinct Podcast.** Ten books and four years into the 87th Precinct series, and we've reached 1960 and the grisly but gripping tale of severed appendages, rainy weather and missing musicians. Along the way you can learn about the great fashions on offer at "Urban Suburban", the history of UK publishers T V Boardman and hear Stevo morph briefly into a pensive lion. We do our review of music and culture for 1960 and reveal the shocking secrets of Jeff Lynne's collusion with robot overlords. All this and Ed McBain too! Thanks for listening and please continue to like, share and review. We also want to direct your attention to the website [wearecult.rocks](http://wearecult.rocks/) in general and the article by Paul, [here](http://wearecult.rocks/ed-mcbain-and-the-87th-precinct), about the books. Bonus episode out soon and get your (still attached) hands and eyes moving over "The Heckler" for the next episode.

**Hark! It's an 87th Precinct Bonus Episode!** And what a bonus episode it is! After discussing our copies of the 87th Precinct book, with Paul demonstrating his inability to grasp the relative costs of pre-decimal currency, we get down to some important business. Imagine a world where Roger Moore appears as himself in a children's crime-fighting story-book written by Doctor Who writer Malcolm Hulke, all set in or around an African Embassy and the BBC in 1977... now, STOP IMAGINING and listen to our reactions as we discuss "The Siege" - the first entry in the Roger Moore and The Crimefighters series! A book that almost defies description! Listen out in the background for mysterious Mic-stand-spring noises (sorry) and contemplate why George Lazenby never organised children into an impromptu militia. See you in the New Year for probably more discussion back on the topic of Ed McBain and "The Heckler". Merry Christmas!

**Hark! It's an 87th Precinct Podcast Bonus Episode** A very silly podcast. Join us for our post-main-podcast descent into madness as we start out proper (the artwork of Tony Palladino, Hitchcock and the nature of The Deaf Man, Teddy Carella and good vs evil), before speculating on what the cover of Stevo's 1979 Penguin edition actually shows. From thereon in, we hear about the Three 'Crimey' Things Paul got up to that day and consider P J Hammond's adventure series Sapphire and Steel in a whole new (Cornish) light. Get your book-eyes pointed at McBain's "See Them Die" in time for the next main podcast, or Kurosawa's High and Low in the meantime. As always, a rating or review anywhere (everywhere?) is appreciated - especially if you're listening on Apple Podcasts.

**Hark! It's the 87th Precinct Podcast!** We're coming to the end of 1960 when Ed McBain releases the thirteenth 87th Precinct novel, See Them Die. A tale of gangs, sieges, unrequited love, heat, tear gas and a big fat man. This is West Side Story as you've never experienced it before. On our travel to Isola's very own Spanish Harlem, we've discuss a whole load of stuff, including a pertinent listener question about the writing and release order of the books, the Ed McBain Mystery Book magazine series, Manhunt and the Puerto Rican diaspora. Stevo is possessed by the ghost of gravel-voiced DJ Tommy Vance, due to his cough, and we also take our usual look at what was going on in music, TV and film of the time as well. Please retweet, share, review, 'like' - everything like that helps us to reach more listeners and keep bringing all our McBain fan-family together. We'll be back soon with the bonus episode and after that - 1961's "Lady, Lady I Did It". Bye!

**Hark! It's an 87th Precinct Podcast Bonus Episode** I mean, we do talk a bit about McBain in this rather silly appendix to our main podcast. Stevo, of course, provides us with the results of his book-huffing and we delve deep into the sorts of books you could get from the discount mail-order shops advertising in the NYT in 1962. We also, as usual, retread some "Carry On..." ground and hark back to the days of the kids TV magazine show "How?", just in case you've not go enough UK emphera inside your heads. With a nod to the podcast, The Five By, we speculate on how you could turn the world of the 87th Precinct into a board game. Oh, and Melvyn Bragg pops by to tell us some more about 'In Our Time'. See you soon for "Lady, Lady I Did It!". Please like, rate, review and share wherever you can, ta!

**Hark! It's the 87th Precinct Podcast!** The year is 1961. 87th Precinct fans have had to wait an entire year since their last fix and they're desperate for another story - McBain finally provides them with the 14th novel in the series, the brutal and heartbreaking Lady, Lady, I Did It! Join us for our usual mix of book-review and contextual-chatter (sorry, there's quite a bit of preamble this time!), as we discover all about what was going on around the world in music, TV and politics. Listen whilst Paul relates some communication from Hunter's literary agent Jane Gelfman (thanks, Jane!) and try not to get fed up with us as we mention the Carry On... films yet again. Thanks for listening and please, as always, share on social media, rate and review in your podcast apps and feel free to send us messages on FB, Twitter, Insta or email (hark87podcast@gmail.com). Join us soon for a bonus episode and then get reading the collection of novellas, The Empty Hours (1962). Fare thee well!

**Hark! It's an 87th Precinct Podcast bonus episode!** FULL DISCLOSURE - we suffered our first ever real technical problem during the recording of this episode, so part way through there's a brief music-snippet to paste over the join. We do 'fess up to it and we didn't lose too much, so it's all okay! In our follow-up to the main podcast episode, we finally reveal the details about Stevo's idea for the show "Criminals and Little and Large"! With amazing skill, Morgan manages to tie our chatter about 1980s/90s British comedy Double Acts back into the world of Police Procedurals, so all's well that ends well. We have a good bout of Book Huffing and explore the peculiar differences between two seemingly identical editions of Lady, Lady, I Did It! and throw in a bit of detail about the history of Bar Codes and the sorts of things that can crop up if you're not careful with your internet searches. Join us again soon for the next book in the series, "The Empty Hours" (1962) and some other Hunter/McBain items! Please remember to rate, review, and share wherever you can. Thanks for your support!

**Hark! It's an 87th Precinct Podcast!** Join us on our journey to find out what happens during "The Empty Hours" - McBain's collection of three novellas released in one volume from 1962. Carella takes on a paper-chase in the title story, whilst Meyer questions his place in the world in *'J' *and Hawes goes out of town looking for loving and finding murder instead in *Storm.* Our research throws up some trivia about the original publication times and places for the stories, as well as info about forensic methods and a sobering look at the sort of idiots spreading race-hate then and now. Of course we also talk a lot of the usual rubbish too! We have a look at what was going on in the early part of 1962 in Music, film, World Events and Crisps. Paul reveals a Doctor Who link to Ed McBain and Stevo contemplates undermining the podcast by reading ahead and backwards. Join us next time for a return to the full novel format for the book from later in 1962, "Like Love". As ever, a review, rating or share on any of the platforms (but especially Apple and Stitcher!) is massively appreciated and helpful. Fare thee well.

**Hark! It's an 87th Precinct Podcast Bonus Episode!** Paul's research into the different first editions of Ed McBain's 1962 collection of "novelettes", The Empty Hours, leads the team into some very silly places indeed. Prepare yourself for an entirely indulgent (and slightly tipsy) bout of INVENT A BOOK TITLE. Stevo is a natural. Also, we see how nerdy Paul can get in his cover-image research and we become obsessed with Crime Causing/Crime Preventing knees. Apologies for the sound issues with this (and the main podcast) - we seemed to be having some mic issues as a consequence (probably) of rushing to set up. Join us soon for the next 'full' novel in the 87th Precinct series, Like Love. Please rate, review, share and get-in touch with us to help us spread the word about McBain and his wonderful books. Fare thee well.

**Hark! It's the 87th Precinct Podcast** Put your time-trousers on and slip back with us to the second part of 1962, as we experience something Like Love... Returning to the single-story format, the 87th Precinct is back with mountains of police procedures, lots of footwork and more bad luck for Steve Carella. He can't catch a break, that fella. It's an explosive tale of suicide, lost love and heartbreak for all involved. We look at what was dominating the music charts in the latter part of 1962, what was (and wasn't) released in the cinemas and explore the source of the original publication of the abridged version of the story. We look into the publishing history of the book as well and how it afforded McBain the chance to take the mickey out of J D Salinger. Thanks for listening. As always, please share, rate and review wherever you get the podcast. We've got some more exciting stuff on the horizon to share with you soon! In the meantime, point your crime-eyes towards "Ten Plus One", the next in the series! Fare Thee Well.

**Hark! It's an 87th Precinct Podcast Bonus Episode!** You chose the title (well, the seven of you who voted), so find out what it's all about in this bonus episode about the 1962 87th Precinct story, Like Love. As usual, there's a good book-huffing, a look at the covers of our different editions (check out our Instagram feed for pictures and more!) and we answer a number of listener questions in regard to how the series might have ended, female authors of crime fiction and more about who the best on-screen Carella was. We also take in 'Call My Bluff', Stevo's proposal for a podcast spin-off called "True Crime?" and you can hear our slow but inexorable collapse into heat fatigue. We'll be back soon with 1963's Ten Plus One, plus some special bonuses for you. Please rate, review and share on the podcast apps and social media you use. Thanks! Fare Thee Well.

**Hark! It's an 87th Precinct Podcast!** Welcome back to the books! After our fantastic diversion off to New York to meet Otto Penzler, we're firmly back in the fictional city of Isola, dodging bullets from rooftops as we put together the pieces of the mystery that is Ten Plus One (1963). The 17th book in the 87th Precinct series is a bloody and dark tale, with only a couple of amusing characters to lighten the mood of what is a battle against the odds to work out why seemingly unrelated victims are getting gunned down. In this episode we take our usual look at the charts/movies/politics of the era, have a look at the issue of Argosy magazine this story was featured in, fail to effectively answer a listener question and collectively forget which books we've read and what happens in them - but at least you get the start of a bonus improvised Poirot story from Stevo! Please do rate, review and share the show and perhaps show your love with a one-off donation to us via www.ko-fi.com/harkpodcast - bonus episode coming soon, plus sharpen your tools for the next story - AX(e)! Fare Thee Well.