Love Libraries – Fife Monday Morning Murder Club: How library group is ‘making murder fun’
Two of the country’s top crime fiction writers – Val McDermid and Ian Rankin – hail from Fife and every year tales of dirty deeds top the table for most borrowed library books in the kingdom.
But it is murder most foul of a different nature that keeps members of a unique group at Rosyth Library coming back for more.
The Monday Morning Murder Club is not a book or reading group – though members will often seek out new titles before and after their sessions – but instead it brings people together for discussion, analysis and, most importantly, fun.
A hit since it started in April 2024, numbers have been capped at 25 to keep the gatherings manageable and to give everyone the confidence to bring their ideas to the table.
Props on the table add to the atmosphere.
Uplifting
Anne Gartshore, one of the founder members, said: “It may be a macabre genre but we never discuss it in a macabre way. Our meetings are always uplifting.”
Pat Mawhood, who has had a lifelong fascination with the psychology behind murder, has been a member from the get-go. They stressed the light-hearted nature of the group, saying: “We make murder fun.”
New friendships have been formed across the ‘evidence table’ and the lively discussions bring companionship and forge connections among members, whose ages range from 17 to late 80s.
Pat said: “We’re now such good friends that if one of us committed a murder, we’d all provide an alibi!”
A display to tie in with the club’s topic of Murder in the Alps.
Popular
The club was the brainchild of Library Assistants Nicola Braid and Teresa Robinson, who attend meetings in crime scene overalls – and have also been known to dress as prisoners.
Library Assistants Nicola Braid, left, and Teresa Robinson in their ‘crime scene’ overalls.
Nicola said: “We knew crime fiction and true crime were popular with customers and we’d have conversations about murder things we’d seen on TV the night before so we thought there could be some interest.
“We also knew we’d lost members during Covid and there was more social isolation. We wanted to try something that could bring people back in.”
A single poster was all it took and so many turned up at the first meeting the pair had to borrow chairs from the neighbouring community centre.
Members of the Monday Morning Murder Club at Rosyth Library.
The club even has an unofficial ‘bloodhound’ – guide dog Colin.
Banter
Part of the success is in the planning.
Teresa said: “We’ll either have a theme or a specific case. So far themes have included ‘poison’, ‘assassinations’, ‘caught by confessions’, ‘caught by coincidence’ and ‘murders inspired by songs’. Cases we’ve looked at include Lockerbie, Murder in the Alps and JonBenet Ramsey.
“At the end of each meeting we’ll say what’s coming up the following week and make some suggestions for reading or watching online or on TV and give out ‘evidence cards’ that people can make notes on to remind them.”
The members have a dedicated WhatsApp group that bolsters their social connections and there is plenty of sharing of information and good-humoured banter.
Everyone comes along with their own theories and no stones are left unturned or conspiracy theory unexamined.
Nicola added: “Of course, by the end we’re all convinced we know exactly ‘whodunnit’ if it’s an unsolved case and sometimes who REALLY did it in other cases.”
Nicola and Teresa believe the group’s success is down to a shared interest and great camaraderie – but without exception, all the members say it is down to the library duo.
Pat said: “The work they put in ahead of the meetings and setting things up is amazing and it couldn’t happen without them.”