Posted by: Alexander McCall Smith - Author of The Good Husband of Zebra Drive

This is an excerpt from Alexander McCall Smith’s newsletter. You can visit his website here.

Last night I went to the premiere showing in London of the film version of The No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency. It was a bitter-sweet occasion: that very morning the director of the film, Anthony Minghella, that good and kind man, died in hospital from complications following an operation. We were all shocked by this sad news: Minghella was the United Kingdom’s most distinguished film director and The No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency is now his last film.

As I am sure you can imagine, I felt very sad. Anthony had been planning for years to make the film. I had complete confidence in him — indeed, I counted myself most fortunate that it was he who was going to make the film. And now this. And yet we must remind ourselves that the film he has made is a wonderful, joyous hymn of praise to Botswana and to Mma Ramotswe. Everything in it is perfect. The actors and actresses are just right: wait until you see Mma Ramotswe, Mr J. L. B. Matekoni and Mma Makutsi — each one of them is just exactly as he or she should be! And the whole film is permeated by love. The film is a stand-alone feature film that was designed to set up a subsequent television series. It will be shown on television stations throughout the world, but may also be shown in some theatres. We await news on that. But there is very important news on the television front: HBO in the United States and the BBC in the UK have teamed up to commission a thirteen-part television series which will start to be filmed in mid- to late-2008 and will be shown in the USA, the UK and throughout the world in early 2009. This is wonderful news indeed, and it came in time for Anthony Minghella to enjoy it. (I am not sure, by the way, when the film will be shown in the USA: I think that it will be shown by HBO closer to the time that they begin the series.) Anthony Minghella was a great man who brought happiness and a very humane vision to this world. I feel very happy that he loved Mma Ramotswe, and I know that she would have loved him.