EVANS TRIES AN O LEVEL

TITLE
 Apt – as story revolves around the masterplan of Evans
 Known as Evans O break – had tried to escape before thrice
 Started since he began taking German O level classes – tutor being from
technical college yet his friend
 He had planned to escape right under the nose of authorities without
having to break a single lock – escorted by officials themselves
 Course of action followed by him is diametrically opposite to one
visualized by authorities and they realised they had been befooled and
tables have turned
 Being intelligent, clever and having manipulative friends this battle of wits
between criminals and jail authorities is outwitted by prison who has the
last laugh despite the best efforts of officials
 Good for giggle gullible officers

THEME
 Maintaining human rights of criminals - right to education/ living/ hygiene
 this battle of wits between criminals and jail authorities is outwitted by
prison who has the last laugh despite the best efforts of officials
 Prison authorities to be highly alert

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

 Colin Dexter crime thriller writer
 Narrative style – suspense knowingly adopted/ mystery to keep interest/
inexplicable pts/ questions
 Twists and turns of stories – can be taken from title
 Thriller and smarter character – Evans
 Proved himself as a captivating writer

EVANS
 James Rodrick Evans Famously known as Evans O break is smart,
intelligent and manipulative prison
  He had already escaped jail thrice before – now kept in heavily guarded D
wing ( classes in recreational block across D wing )
 Usually filthy looking unshaven appearance with long wavy hair like Shirley
temple – grubby string vest with equally grubby trousers and a red and
white bobble hat
 Not a violent sort of a person
 Pleasant chap and is known to be one of the stars at Christmas concert
 Does imitations of mike yardwood
 Is congenital kleptomaniac
 Not a real burden – just persistent, nagging presence
 Warm enemies with Jackson
 pretty confident of his masterplan even after general caught him
 has last laugh

MASTERPLAN VS SECURITY ARRANGEMENTS

 wow pointers of masterplan and blunders of security

OFFICIALS
 Jackson – senior prison official on D wing, Warm enemies with Evans
 Stephens – Burly, surly looking man, recently recruited
 Sarcasm – Einstein (Jackson), mathematician and jew (Stephen) over his
unshaven along with filthy looking red and white bobble hat
 Jackson – had string of second world war medals proudly parading over his
breast pocket
 Jackson had a tiny core of compassion for Evans – let him have the hat
{lucky charm}
 BBC

GOVERNOR
 BBC

MCLEERY
  Pretending to be…
 At 8:45, 8 June Reverend Stuart McLeery left his bachelor flat in broad
street and stepped out towards Carfax
 Due to temperature being reported below than avg for early June, he wore
black overcoat and shallow crowned clerical hat that provided him
welcome protection from steady drizzle set half an hour earlier and
spattered on his thick lenses
 Carrying a brown suitcase – included a sealed question paper envelope,
yellow invigilation form, a special authentication card from examinations
board, a paper knife, a bible and current copy of church times
 Real Mc Leery position

SHOULD PRISORNERS BE GIVEN AN OPPORTUNITY TO LEARN

SEQUENCE OF EVENTS
 Early March – Secretary of Examinations Board received a call from Oxford
Prison for unusual request – To let Evans give O level German exam
 Discussion details – started individual classes last September, procedure,
character of Evans {not mentioned about that particular side –
breakthrough prisoner}, room- cell and invigilator – parson from St Mary
Mags
 Evans – the break, disgrace, not real burden – just persistent, nagging etc
 At 8:30 pm on Monday June 7, German tutor shook hands with sarcastic
good luck – not a cat’s hell chance of getting through
 Evans replied saying that he might surprise everyone {had masterplan}
 Next day 8:30 am morning, two visitors – Jackson and Stephen
 Sarcastic comments followed by taking sharp objects like razor, nail file
and nail scissors away in pretext of governors order
 Reverend Stuart McLerry entry
 2 hr exam scheduled to start at 9:15 am
 Stephens arranging the room – 2 tables 2 chairs
 Evans got to know of his cell being bugged with microphone listened by
governor himself {disclosure by Jackson} – small hint of plan no 2
handkerchief
 McLerry arrives at gates of oxford prison – signed his name on visitors
book walked to D wing
 D wing – two doors – outer unlocked , inner one locked – taken in by
Stephens
 Jackson gives instructions to Stephens to keep his eyes skinned
 9:10 am – governor switched on the receiver
 Due to apprehensions of Evans using some weapon to get Mc Leery
hostage he asked officers to check his bag
 Got unusual object – smallish semi inflated rubber ring – Jackson
questioned – Leery’s amiable demeanour ruffled and answered he suffers
from haemorrhoids which embarrassed Jackson
 9:18 – governor heard their voices again
 Details given by invigilator in the form of form filling –
021-1 -
Index no – 313 –
 At 9:20 am – Stephens gets out of cell on governors order on Evans
request
 9:25 – exam started
 9:40 – examinations board rang through and assistant secretary with
special responsibility for modern languages asked to speak to the governor
– correction slip forgotten
 Page 3, line 15, 4th word should read goldenen not goldene
 Governor himself had taken German in sixth form himself and
remembered about agreements of adjectives
 Phone rang again – the magistrates court – needed a prison van with
couple of prison officials { I think its connected to the last flee of Evans
although not specifically mentioned}
 Stephens peering through the hole all this time in every 2 mins { pen
between lips staring straight at door}
 10:50 am – blanket given to Evans {chilly in winters}
 11:20 am – receiver crackled again McLerry informing that only 5 mins are
left. Governor reached for the phone to call examinations board
{unsuccessful}
 11:22 am- Jackson called Stephens saying governor wants to speak to him.
He picked up the phone apprehensively and listened to rapid orders of
escorting McLerry to prison gates and check door was locked for cell
 11:25 am – governor heard the final exchanges and then the door clang
 On escorting McLerry out, Stephens thought his Scots accent seemed
broader than ever, and his long black overcoat reaching almost to his
knees, fostered the illusion that he has suddenly grown thin
 Stephens felt pleased that governor had asked him to escort McLerry and
not Jackson off the premises – proud appreciative step
 Then he directly didn’t take step to canteen for coffee and wanted to take
one last look at Evans – TV show where woman could never really
convince herself that see has locked the door when gone to bed, would
get up several times to check the bolts
 Opened the cell doors and saw a man with grey regulation blanket, front
with closely cropped, irregularly tufted hair awash with fierce red blood
dripping already through small black beard and was now spreading
horribly over white clerical collar and down onto the black clerical front
 Stephen shouted widly for Jackson and this penetrated the curtain of
blood that veiled McLerry and his hand went for handkerchief to stop
oozing blood – gave a long low moan, tried to speak within mins the
handkerchief was a sticky, squelchy wodge of cloth
 McLerry raised himself and said that they should get the governor, he
knows where Evans is
 Almost immediately sirens were sounding, prison officers barked orders,
puzzled prisoners pushed their way along the corridors, doors were
banged and bolted, and phones were ringing everyone
 Supported by Jackson and Stephens on both sides, his face was now
streaked and caked with drying blood and greeted governor perplexed and
grim – got his attention to the photocopied sheet cleverly superimposed
over the last pg of the question paper
 Governor dredging layers of German text - long neglected learning
 Details – 3 mins, don’t hit too hard, don’t overdo the Scots accent
 A fast approaching siren wailed to its crescendo, doors pushed back and
white police car squealed – arrival of detective superintendent
 Swung himself out of passenger seat and then again Mc Leery went with
him to Elsfield way {examinations board } drive to Headington roundabout
 Governor turned to Jackson and Stephens questioning calm and in
scathing contempt
 Then revelation governor never called Stephens at 11:22
 It was Jackson who spent 2 hrs in Evans cell the previous evening and had
confidently reported that nothing was hidden away – Evans managed to
conceal not only a false beard, a pair of spectacles, dogcollar and rest
clerical paraphernalia along with weapon
 From Headington to Neugraben {Newbury} – rapped orders to ring to St
Aldates Police Station – take both officers and ring to chief inspector bell
Assured by inspector bell, governor laid down and lit a cigarette and
appreciated Evans for plan just careless for leaving question paper behind
– confident he would be back in
 Phone rang- carter lost Evans- governor asked to go to Newbury- believed
it was a police job now – another good for a giggle governor
 Got McLerry to Radcliffe hospital at examinations board
 Governor inquired about him at hospital, they said that ambulance was
sent at Elsfield way but there was no fellow there
 Truth seemed to hit governor almost with physical impact on the back of
his neck
 A quarter of an hour later they found reverend S. McLerry bound and
gagged to his study in Broad Street since 8:15 am
 Throughout the afternoon enquiries in Newbury produced nothing and till
then everyone in prison knew – it had not been Evans impersonating
McLerry that walked out rather he impersonated McLerry that stayed in
 Fish and chips were delicious in centre of chipping Norton, Evans decided
to return to the hotel for early night
 Smart new hat concealed the wreckage of his closely cropped hair – would
take good while for his hair to regain to its former glories - walked to
reception desk of Golden Lion
 Bad luck – scissors taken so only razor – tricky operation
Good luck – let him keep his bobble hat
 Allergic to sticking plaster – fake beard – chin irritatingly sore and red
 Receptionist wasn’t the same girl – change for better- gave her best smile
and told he wont be bothering with breakfast, ordered daily express and
asked for early morning call at 6:45 am – busy day tomo
 Tricky moments - Mc Leery wore two black collars – slipping away, pen
struck, blanket bargaining
 Got everything in the car – soap, water, clothes, map – the ordinance
survey map of Oxfordshire – clever friends
 Unlocked the door and got frozen to the spot like he caught the glimpse of
gorgon
 Governor told not to try to flee as there are men around – women too –
blonde girl
 Evans shaken – head between his hands with silence for mins then spoke
up accusing the bloody correction slip
 Governor with satisfaction said – commented v few people know of
German
 Zum goldene lowen – golden lion which one? – six fig – 313/271 –
ordnance survey map – lands you in middle of chirping Norton
 Disclosure of rubber ring for piles – clotting being trouble they got the
blood from slaughter house in Kidlington – pig blood {1/10 th of own
volume and 3.8% trisodium citrate}
 Governor shook his head in token of reluctant admiration – they learn
something new everyday
 Revealed German tutor not from technical college planning with him
 Silent officer handcuffed Evans and governor gave farewell as if to an old
friend at cocktail party
 Evans inquired whether he knows anymore modern languages – on
counter questioning he replied O level Italian classes are coming these
September
 To which they both agreed on the fact that he might not be there by next
September
 As van turned right from chipping Norton, Evans handcuffs were removed
and leaned to driver to hurry up
 Evans suggested that they could move to Newbury and had a last laugh