IT WAS the real-life murder that could have been penned by Agatha Christie.

In 1931, a telephone message was left at a chess club, instructing one of its members, insurance agent William Wallace, to meet a Mr Qualtrough.

But the address given by the mystery caller did not exist, and Wallace returned home to find his wife Julia bludgeoned to death.

This classic case is investigated in Move to MurderMove to Murder, the latest book in the Cold Case JuryCold Case Jury series by Chandler's Ford author Antony Matthew Brown.

The case turns on the telephone call. Who made it?

The police thought it was Wallace creating an alibi. Others believe Wallace innocent but disagree on the identity of the murderer.

Wallace was tried and found guilty, but his death sentence was then quashed on appeal.

“Over the decades four main theories have been advanced to solve the case,” explains Antony, “including one by the famous novelist P. D. James.

“This case has everything. A brutal killing triggered by a mysterious telephone call. The suspicious behaviour of the husband on the night of the murder. And one of the most bizarre clues in criminal history – a burned Mackintosh found under the victim’s body.”

After reading about the case in the book, readers are able to deliver their verdict online. For more information, visit www.coldcasejury.com.