The Echo Murders ** (1945, David Farrar, Dennis Price, Pamela Stirling) – Classic Movie Review 13,938

The 1945 British wartime thriller film The Echo Murders stars David Farrar in his second and last outing as the famous fictional British detective Sexton Blake.

Writer/ director John Harlow’s 1945 British wartime thriller film The Echo Murders is based on the story The Terror of Tregarwyth by Hector Hawton [writing as John Sylvester], and stars David Farrar, Dennis Price, and Pamela Stirling.

The reliable actor David Farrar is well cast and entirely acceptable in a slightly stiff but solid performance as the famous fictional British detective Sexton Blake, in this modest, mildly entertaining movie. It tells a traditional tale but with a wartime spin, in which Blake investigates a mine boss’s murder and pretends to be dead to round up wartime German spies who are based in Cornish tin mines.

John Harlow’s screenplay is taken from the story The Terror of Tregarwyth by John Sylvester, writing as John Sylvester.

Release date: 17 December 1945 (UK).

David Farrar also previously played Sexton Blake in Meet Sexton Blake (1945), released on 5 February 1945 (UK).

The fictional British detective Sexton Blake appeared in stories published over eight decades from 1893 to 1978, featuring in more than 4,000 stories by around 200 different authors.

The first Sexton Blake story was The Missing Millionaire, written by Harry Blyth (as Hal Meredeth), and published in The Halfpenny Marvel number 6, on 20 December 1893.

Cast: David Farrar, Dennis Price, Pamela Stirling, Julien Mitchell, Dennis Arundell, Cyril Smith, Ferdy Mayne, Kynastion Reeves, Patric Curwen, Johnnie Schofield, Paul Croft, Desmond Roberts, Danny Green, Vincent Holman, Tony Arpino, Howard Douglas, Billy Howard, Anders Timberg, H Victor Weske, Gerald Pring, Noel Dainton, Charles Hersee, Olive Walter.

The Echo Murders is directed by John Harlow, runs 75 minutes is made by British National Films and Strand Film Company, is released by Anglo-American Film Corporation (UK), is written by John Harlow, is shot in black and white by James Wilson, is produced by Louis H Jackson, and is scored by Percival Mackey.

© Derek Winnert 2026 – Classic Movie Review 13,938

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