Sir Charles Cartwright (real name Charles Mugg) is the main antagonist of the Agatha Christie’s 1934 Hercule Poirot novel Three Act Tragedy. Cartwright is an aging British actor with a poisoning scheme for the sake of accomplishing marriage with the woman he loves, Egg Lytton Gore.
In the TV movie adaption, he was portrayed by Martin Shaw.
Biography[]
Charles Mugg was an elder famous British actor with the stage name Sir Charles Cartwright, married to a woman who was in an insane asylum, thus he could never divorce her. He hoped to keep her a secret when he fell in love with Hermione Lytton Gore, known affectionately as "Egg". The only witness to Mugg's first marriage was a Doctor Bartholomew Strange, who refused to permit such a marriage.
Mugg used his acting prestige and skills to carry out a convoluted murder of Strange by nicotine poisoning in gardening solution. Inviting guests to a party, including dear friend Hercule Poirot, he spiked a random glass on a tray of cocktails to see who would drink it, giving Egg her own untainted class and knowing Strange doesn't like cocktails. Conducting a trial run to practice swiping the glass and succeeding in the crime in front of multiple witnesses, even esteemed detective Poirot, he succeeded in poisoning Reverend Stephen Babbington. He was the only person to allege it murder, but the glass he switched the tainted one with came up clean and the death was ruled as natural causes.
He then, as a "game" or "bet" between him and Strange, pretended to be his butler Ellis, even drawing a birthmark on his hand as part of the disguise. He carried the ruse out for three months before Strange hosted a party with the same guests, only for Mugg to spike his port glass and poison the doctor with nicotine, performing the same glass swipe. Poirot is called upon to investigate the same circumstances by Mugg personally, taking a front seat in "helping" the investigation and interviewing suspects. He hears accounts of when he was Ellis, down to the birthmark in his hand, but he panics when he finds out playwright and party guest Muriel Willis noticed his hands as Ellis'. When Willis tells Poirot, he insists she go into hiding, which she does.
Knowing the game's up for him, Mugg devises one more murder as a last ditch effort to avoid incrimination. He arranges a fraudulent telegram under the name of one of Strange's sanatorium patient, Margaret de Rushbridger, claiming to 'know information", also sending her a box of chocolates. She's dead by the time the two arrive because Mugg laced the chocolates also with nicotine, all purely as a distraction. But it doesn't work.
Poirot catches Mugg's secretary, Violet Milray, trying to flee jurisdiction after destroying the gardening solution to protect Mugg. He then rounds up the usual suspects and reveals Mugg as the murderer all along, every detail, every involved or distracting party, even his real name and institutionalized wife. Mugg's at first smug and despondent, disbelieving in Poirot's evidence. But when it becomes more incriminating, Mugg is shocked. Defeated, he furious grumbles "What have you done?!" Poirot returns the question, pointing out Mugg was always responsible for the ruses. Mugg finally concedes and, in despair, curses Poirot and everyone in the room before being arrested. All of them then lament how each and everyone one of them could've drunk the first drink that Mugg laced with nicotine to murder any one of them for mere practice.
Victims[]
- Reverend Stephen Babbington (poisoned his cocktail with nicotine; replaced his glass)
- Doctor Sir Bartholomew Strange (poisoned his port glass with nicotine; replaced his glass)
- Margaret de Rushbridger (poisoned her with nicotine in chocolates)
