10 Reasons Publicist Agatha Raisin Makes Such a Great Crime Detective

Nov 13

Plus a Quiz to See which Type of Detective You’d Be

Agatha Raisin is a Publicist turned crime solver

There are two things I know:

Publicists can sniff out deception faster than a dog can find a sandwich accidentally dropped on the floor.
Ashley Jensen’s portrayal of a PR-professional-turned-detective hits home in so many ways.

If you’ve watched the Agatha Raisin (airs on Acorn TV), you know what I mean: British flack and flamboyant dresser Agatha Raisin investigates crimes the same way she explores story pitches. With bravado. With charm. With excellent outerwear. And with absolutely no tolerance for nonsense.

After nearly 30 years in PR, I can confidently say just about every seasoned publicist is just a teapot of Earl Grey away from solving crimes between emails.

Here’s my airtight casefile on why publicists make outstanding private investigators.

1. We investigate people for a living.

Detectives call it “background research.” Publicists call it “pitch prep.” Before I pitch anyone, I’ve already:

read their last 40 articles
checked their social channels
looked at who they follow
analyzed their interests
cross-referenced their previous roles
and, yes, peeked at their dog’s name if it's mentioned in their bio

If you think that level of digging wouldn’t help track down a killer… you’re adorable.

2. We know how to connect dots the average human never even sees.

Detectives follow clues. Publicists follow patterns. Did a journalist switch beats suddenly? Why did a founder go mysteriously quiet on Instagram? Why did three influencers post vaguely the same caption about “chaos energy” on the same day?

Coincidence? Please. My spidey-sense has been training for decades.

Give me a corkboard, red string, and a peppermint mocha and I will build you a timeline, motive map, and character profile worthy of an entire BBC season.

3. Our gut instinct? Deadly accurate.

You don’t work with founders, photographers, editors, stylists, agencies, and that one CFO who always “has a quick question” for three decades without developing intuition that could power a small solar grid.

Agatha Raisin trusts her gut. So do I. So does every PR pro worth their salt.

And we’re almost always right, to the dismay of villains and interns everywhere.

4. We’re charming… strategically.

Detectives call it “interrogation.” Publicists call it “relationship-building,” “rapport,” or “just popping in!”

Do you need someone to open up? Give you the key detail? Reveal the motive? Tell you what actually went down at the village fête? Honey, hand me a sparkling water and a quiet corner table. I’ll have the truth in seven minutes and a possible brand collab in fifteen.

5. We thrive under pressure.

Let’s be honest: crisis PR is basically detective work with better shoes.

Assess the scene ✔️
Gather facts ✔️
Interview witnesses ✔️
Uncover the real story ✔️
Tell the version that won’t cause a riot ✔️

If you’ve ever handled a rebrand, unavailable product two weeks before Christmas, influencer meltdown, or website-crashes-on-launch-day fiasco… a murder mystery is frankly a spa day.

(If your brand needs a crisis-proof strategy, you’d like my unique suite of services. Yes, this is a shameless plug. Agatha would respect the hustle.)

6. We can smell secrets from a mile away.

Every founder has “one tiny detail they didn’t mention.” Every brand has a skeleton in its Shopify backend. Every influencer has a chaotic cousin who takes over their account once a year. Secrets don’t scare us. We live knee-deep in them.

A murder plot? Please. Try managing a client with a half-finished press quote and a hard deadline in 13 minutes.

7. We spot red flags faster than anyone.

Detectives: “There’s a footprint.”
Publicists: “There’s an inconsistency in their Instagram archive, a deleted Story from 48 hours ago, and their entire energy screams ‘something happened at 11:23 p.m.’”

If there’s a clue, we find it. If there’s a lie, we see it. If there’s a motive, we clock it before the tea kettle boils.

8. We are relentlessly persistent.

Try ignoring a PR follow-up. I dare you.

We will circle back. We will gently nudge. We will just check in until the sun explodes.

If publicists pursued criminals with the same energy we pursue press hits… every cold case would be solved by Thursday.

9. We question everything.

Detectives ask, “Does this alibi hold up?”
Publicists ask, “Does this sound like you or did someone run this through ChatGPT at 1 a.m.?”

We poke holes in stories for sport. We ask follow-up questions like we’re paid by the question mark. We do not accept vague answers, ever.

Honestly, if the police adopted PR-style fact-checking, cases would wrap up faster than a founder’s Instagram Live.

10. And finally: we care about the story.

Detectives uncover the truth. Publicists shape it, refine it, and give it emotional nuance, pacing, tension, and sometimes a seasonal hook.

Agatha Raisin solves crimes because she wants the story to make sense.

Publicists solve chaos because we want the story to make sense.

Same skill set. Better outfits.

FAQs About Publicists as Detectives

(Yes, I wrote these with a straight face.)

Do publicists actually make good investigators?

Yes — half our job is investigating: narratives, people, motives, timelines, inconsistencies, and public perception.

Is this post a joke or serious?

Both. Painfully both.

Would I make a good PI?

If you’ve done PR for 30 years, survived launch season, and still show up in lipstick and optimism — you could solve anything.

What does this have to do with brand storytelling?

Everything. PR and detective work both require understanding the deeper narrative.

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