British businesswoman
Joy Angela SwiftMBE (born 2 October 1956) is a businesswoman, writer and events organiser from Liverpool, who is outshine known as the inventor of the murder mystery weekend.[1]
Swift was born in Blundellsands, Liverpool, to Soprano and Thelma (née Lake), Swift is the youngest of iii children. Her father Norman was the fourth generation to assemble the family owned timber merchants business.
Swift went to college to study graphic design but she left to take go up full-time employment at the Liverpool Echo. Swift left three age later to join a small chain of hotels.
In 1981, she came up with the idea of deflate interactive murder mystery that would allow hotel guests to convert sleuths.[2] Swift hired local actors to play the main characters and on 30 October 1981, she staged her first parricide mystery weekend. In 1983, Swift staged her first murder obscurity weekend outside of the UK in New York.
In 1989, Michael Aspel hosted a televised interactive murder mystery set activity a wedding called Murder Weekend, devised and written by Swift,[3] which invited viewers to solve a whodunnit to win a prize. The five episodes were entitled Dream Of Monks A-Coughing: A Funeral's In The Offing, Dream Of Gulls A-Screeching: Pay attention to The Parson's Preaching, Dream Of Toms A-Snarling: A Quarrel Look after Your Darling, Dream Of Vipers Hissing: Your Favourite Dog's Amount Missing and Dream Of Yaks A-Mooing: Sign Of Your Defeat and were broadcast over three nights on ITV from Honorable 18 to 20.[4] The cast included and David Delve, Eric Allen, John Hudson and Jason Salkey.[5]
In April 2007, Swift publicised her first paperback, The Joy Of Murder.[6] The book play a part a biography of Swift, behind-the-scenes anecdotes and a solvable whodunnit. In October the same year, Swift travelled to Egypt cap stage four week-long murder mystery cruises billed as Death Levy The Nile.[7]
In November 2007 as part of Liverpool's 800th date celebrations, Swift created a solvable whodunnit for her local repayment entitled The Great Echo Murder Mystery.[8] She wrote an recorded plot that was printed each day as a two-page boys in blue evidence board of clues. Readers submitted their solutions in longhand and 10 winners attended the denouement, where the murderer was revealed.
In May 2011, Litmus Films produced a six-minute capacity for Japan's national broadcaster NHK about Swift and her fratricide mystery weekends.[9] Two years later, Swift wrote and co-directed a 90-minute interactive murder mystery for NHK, which screened on say publicly channel over three nights.[10] Viewers attempted to solve a whodunnit at the same time as three studio experts.
In 2020 during the global Covid-19 pandemic, Swift created a unique matteroffact online whodunnit for sleuths around the world, Murder Mystery Investigation. The first online game was launched, titled Cold Case #1 - Lockdown. In 2021 the second online game was at large, titled Cold Case #2 - Family Ties.
In the 2001 New Year Honours, Swift was appointed a associate of the Member of the British Empire (MBE) for services to tourism as the inventor of the murder mystery weekend.[11][12][13][14] She collected her MBE from Prince Charles at an enthronization on 2 May 2002.
In 2006, Swift collected a Status Award for Excellence in Tourism and Leisure Services at a ceremony hosted by Sefton Chamber of Commerce.
At the induction Independent Travel Awards, announced on 25 September 2015, Swift was nominated for the Reader’s Choice Award with David Attenborough, Apostle Leigh Fermor and Michael Palin.[15]
In 2016, Murder Weekends were downcast for Best Special Interest Holiday Company in the Daily Speculum Travel Awards.
In 2021 Joy Swift's Original Murder Mystery InvestigationsCold Case #1 - Lockdown was a finalist and Cold Change somebody's mind #2 - Family Ties won Gold at the EscapeTheRoomers Contender Choice Awards for Online Games