The Detection Club

THE DETECTION CLUB was formed in 1930 by a group of British mystery writers including Agatha Christie, Dorothy L. Sayers, Freeman Wills Crofts, Arthur Morrison, John Rhode and H. C. Bailey. Anthony Berkeley was instrumental in setting up the Club and the first president was G. K. Chesterton. There was a fanciful initiation ritual, with an oath that was probably written by either G. K. Chesterton or Dorothy L. Sayers, and was administered by the club president, known as The Ruler, and the Club held regular dinner meetings in London.

In addition to meeting for dinners and helping one another with technical aspects in their individual writing, the members of the club agreed to adhere to a code of ethics in their writing to give the reader a fair chance at guessing the guilty party. These fair play 'rules' were summarised by one of the members, Ronald Knox, in an introduction to an anthology of detective stories.

THE FAIR PLAY RULES

I. The criminal must be someone mentioned in the early part of the story, but must not be anyone whose thoughts the reader has been allowed to follow.
II. All supernatural or preternatural agencies are ruled out as a matter of course. To solve a detective problem by such means would be like winning a race on the river by the use of a concealed motor-engine.
III. Not more than one secret room or passage is allowable.
IV. No hitherto undiscovered poisons may be used, nor any appliance which will need a long scientific explanation at the end.
V. No Chinaman must figure in the story.
VI. No accident must ever help the detective, nor must he ever have an unaccountable intuition which proves to be right
VII. The detective must not himself commit the crime.
VIII. The detective must not light on any clues are not instantly produced for the inspection of the reader
IX. The stupid friend of the detective, the Watson, must not conceal any thoughts which pass through his mind; his intelligence must be slightly, but very slightly, below that of the average reader.
X. Twin brothers, and doubles generally, must not appear unless we have been duly prepared for them.

They were never intended as more than guidelines, and not all the members took them seriously. The Club continues to exist, although the fair play rules have been considerably relaxed.