SIMENON SIMENON "VINTAGE" - BRITISH CREATIVE AGENCY WINS RIGHTS TO SIMENON WORKS

The Telegraph - 23/01/2013 - Katerine Rushton - The entire works of Maigret creator Georges Simenon are to be published in English for the first time, after talent agency The Rights House won a battle against his son for the estate.The company quietly bought 90pc of the Georges Simenon estate from Chorion, the intellectual property company that collapsed into administration last year, after seeing off fierce competition from John Simenon, who retains the remaining 10pc.DC Advisory Partners brokered the deal for an undisclosed sum. Now Peters Fraser Dunlop, the literary arm of The Rights House, plans to establish Georges Simenon as a major brand.The prolific Belgian crime writer, who wrote 391 books including 75 around his Maigret detective character – played above by Michael Gambon in a 1992 TV version – is a bestseller in Europe but has “languished” in Britain, said Caroline Michel, PFD’s chief executive.The company is in discussions to revive Maigret for a new television series and has struck a major deal with Penguin to publish all the books, starting in the Autumn. It will also produce audio versions with Amazon’s audiobook venture, Audible, where Ms Michel hopes they will benefit from the US launch of Whispersync...>>>