Unschool Crime Connections

Did Erin Patterson murder three people with her beef Wellington? Did she use toxic death cap mushrooms in her deadly dinner? Many people worldwide have been waiting for answers to these questions.

Some media dubbed Patterson’s trial as The Mushroom Murders as if there was no question she was guilty, and maybe most people assumed she was. The evidence seemed strong for the prosecution.

When questioned, Erin Patterson said she wanted to cook something special for her unfortunate guests. So, she used a beef Wellington recipe from Dinner, a cookbook by Nagi Maehashi from RecipeTin Eats.

My daughters, Imogen and Charlotte, have the RecipeTin Eats cookbooks. A few months back, when we went to their place for dinner, they cooked us a delicious Nagi beef casserole.

Not so long ago, while walking with our dogs, Nora and Quinn, I spied a splattering of bright red mushrooms in the grass in our nearby park. They were at different stages of development. Some were small, mostly yellow spheres. Others were larger, red spheres encrusted with yellow. The oldest mushrooms were large, red, flattened discs with a few yellow spots.

I googled the fungus and discovered it’s the mushroom, Amanita muscaria. Amanita? That name caught my attention. I wondered: Is that the same genus as the death cap mushroom? It is. My fairytale fungus is toxic.

It’s strange how a murder trial generates so much public interest. What is it about crime that captures our attention? Do true crime stories allow us to explore situations we fear safely? Are we interested in what motivates people to commit crimes? Do we want to see justice served? Is it the whodunnit aspect of crime that entertains and intrigues us?

I often read crime novels.

Recently, I’ve enjoyed books by:

Anthony Horowitz – The Twist of a Knife, Marble Hall Murders,

Chris Hammer – Silver, The Tilt,

Patricia Wolf – Opal.

I also like crime shows.

Evening after evening, for several months, my husband Andy and I enjoyed an episode of the crime show, Death in Paradise. This series has a touch of Agatha Christie: when the detective has solved the crime, he gathers the suspects together to reveal the murderer. While Andy and I watched the show, we examined the facts, tried to identify the red herrings, did a bit of critical thinking and mostly failed to identify the murderer. But that was okay. Somehow, we feel cheated if we’re successful.

When we’d watched the last available episode of Death in Paradise, Andy asked, “What shall we watch next?” I scrolled through several direct streaming sites and said, “How about Endeavour?” I’d already watched Morse and Lewis. I’d recommend all three series.

A couple of days ago, the jury for the Erin Patterson case reached a verdict: guilty. I don’t think anyone was surprised.

We can learn a lot by reading crime fiction or watching crime shows, true or imaginary, can’t we?

I bet many people in Australia now know how to cook a beef Wellington, and where to find a recipe for it. They probably also know a lot about foraging and death cap mushrooms. Maybe we all now realise we shouldn’t lie. And we shouldn’t vent about others in supposedly private online places. Imagine if our unkind words, like Patterson’s, were broadcast around the world.

So, for the past ten weeks or so, the biggest crime story was The Mushroom Murders. Maybe you kept up with the trial. Or you might prefer fictional crime. Do you have a favourite crime author or book? Are you enjoying any murder movies or TV series?

Recently, while on a mother-daughter weekend in Sydney, Gemma-Rose, and I saw Kenneth Branagh’s Poirot movie, A Haunting in Venice. I suspect it wasn’t that good, but we enjoyed it immensely because we watched it together, tucked in our beds, while we sipped Prosecco and savoured tiramisu ordered from room service.

Crime can divide families and can cause enormous pain. But it can also connect us together as long as we make sure we’re on the right side of the law.

Andy and I are visiting our daughters, Imogen and Charlotte, again tonight.

Andy plans to take Charlotte his latest crime novel. She’s a big crime fan, too. I offered to buy a bottle of wine. Imogen and Charlotte will cook a RecipeTin Eats dinner.

“What would you like to eat?” the girls asked. “We want to make something special for you.”

“We’d be happy with anything,” I replied.

Except for beef Wellington.

Main Image: Dylan Leagh, Unsplash

I took the rest of the photos.