12. Mr James Fox

Transcript of Tape-Recorded Interview conducted at St Aldates Police Station on Wednesday 28th October 1998. Present: DCI E. Morse, Sgt S. Blackbird, Mr J. Fox.

SB: Dr Fox…
JF: (Interrupting) Oh, no, don’t call me that – you make me sound like a DJ. Jim’s fine. Or Mr Fox, if you insist.
SB: I thought you were a doctor?
EM: Mr Fox is referring to the fact that he is a Member of the Royal College of Surgeons of London, formerly the Guild of Barber-Surgeons, who use the honorific “Mister” to reflect their historical lack of medical training.
JF: Er, yes, that’s kind of right. I’m an Obstetrics and Gynaecology Registrar.
EM: Anyway, back on Saturday night you left the Butchers at the same time as Phil Harcourt, went straight home and went out on your push bike on the Sunday morning?
JF: Absolutely.
SB: Can you confirm the precise movements, Jim, over both Saturday night and Sunday?
EM: The good Sergeant enjoys the fine details, I’m afraid
JF: I cycled from the Butchers back to my house in Summertown, in Dew Drop Crescent. My wife was still up and we went straight off to bed. We woke up at about 7.30, I went out to meet up with the lads for the cycle, starting from Bury Knowle Park at 10. Only James and Andy showed up. Back to the house for 12.30. The missus had got back already from the gym. We had lunch then I went for a nap.
SB: And the Sunday evening and night, sir?
JF: I was on call at the JR1. Performing an emergency salpingo-oöphorectomy.
SB: A what?
EM: A removal of the ovary and the tube, Sergeant. It’s a shame that Classical training isn’t included in the medical curriculum though. There’s a diaeresis on the third “o”, meaning that it is pronounced as three distinct “o” syllables, “go -oh oh -phorectomy” rather than “go-oof-orectomy”. All because of the disappearance of the Digamma from ancient Greek.
JF: Oooo-kay…
EM: Had Gideon been acting unusually recently?
JF: Well… (pause) well, it’s going to seem a bit odd, what with Kate and all, but I think he’s started going to church more often. I mean, he goes from time to time – gets dragged there more like. Couldn’t really escape it with his mum and then Kate. But I think he goes there on his own sometimes. As far as I’m aware, he’s never really been in to that sort of thing.
EM: And your view on Kate Buckland?
JF: Kate, well… (pause) you know, we’ve never really seen eye to eye. I mean, don’t get me wrong, she’s absolutely lovely but we had quite a few arguments as undergrads when we’d had a bit to drink. Typical thing: theology student against medical student – creation versus evolution, that kind of business. I’ve never been able to understand the religious position, not with so much scientific evidence, Darwinism, the spread of antibiotic-resistance in bacteria, the Selfish Gene. So we’ve always agreed to disagree.
EM: Do you mind giving me the clues that Gideon set you for the next pub crawl?
JF: Oh, erm (pause). Here we are. Couldn’t remember if I’d got them.
SB: For the benefit of the tape, Mr Fox has reached into his briefcase and handed an envelope to DCI Morse.
EM: Opened?
JF: Yes. I.., I’m, err, not proud to admit that I always open the envelope shortly after getting it. I need a head start. I got into all this business through the cycling and, hell, I love my real beer and like a pub quiz as much as the next man but the others have always carried me a bit. And then we invented the crawl game and I’m getting more and more out of my depth. This cryptic business. I get a forfeit almost every week. Saturday was a rare exception – I can’t believe that James missed the Somerset when I could get it! And I virtually never get the connection these days.
EM: Fair enough, sir, fair enough. Just one last question: did Gideon like cars at all?
JF: Well, he didn’t drive! Never took a lesson.
EM: I am aware of this, sir, but it doesn’t exclude an interest in their mechanics, or their history, or classics like my Jag.
JF: No, definitely not. He’d rather spend as much on a top-end road bike.
EM: Thank you, Mr Fox. Interview over.