# Mr. Brown — The Secret Adversary character guide

> Mr. Brown in The Secret Adversary by Agatha Christie.

**Role:** supporting

**Also known as:** Brown, the elusive Mr. Brown

**First appearance:** 0014-xii-a-friend-in-need

## Snapshot

A name whispered like a password and a threat, Mr. Brown is the unseen hand that makes hardened conspirators flinch and lie.

## Who they are

No one in the gang can describe Mr. Brown, and that is precisely his power: he is a rumor that has learned to give orders, a password Tommy chances upon and survives by repeating. Kramenin has seen him in a crowd and cannot identify him; Boris speaks of his vengeance in a lowered voice. He matters because every thread of the conspiracy, from Whittington's offer to Jane Finn's captivity, seems to run back to a man who may be anyone in the room.

## Relationships

### [Tuppence Cowley](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_secret_adversary_se/characters/tuppence_cowley)

_rivalry_

Mysterious master criminal who is Tuppence's ultimate adversary in the plot.

### [Tommy Beresford](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_secret_adversary_se/characters/tommy_beresford)

_rivalry_

Shadowy antagonist who orchestrates threats and traps against Tommy.

### [Tommy Beresford](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_secret_adversary_se/characters/tommy_beresford)

_rivalry_

Shadowy antagonist who orchestrates threats and traps against Tommy.

### [Tuppence Cowley](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_secret_adversary_se/characters/tuppence_cowley)

_rivalry_

Mysterious master criminal who is Tuppence's ultimate adversary in the plot.

### [Tuppence Cowley](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_secret_adversary_se/characters/tuppence_cowley)

_rivalry_

Mysterious master criminal who is Tuppence's ultimate adversary in the plot.

## In the story

### [II: Mr. Whittington's Offer](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_secret_adversary_se/chapters/ii-mr-whittington-s-offer)

The clerk named Brown delivers a telephone message to Whittington during the meeting.

### [IV: Who Is Jane Finn?](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_secret_adversary_se/chapters/iv-who-is-jane-finn)

Mr. Brown is described as a mysterious criminal mastermind who controls a vast spy network and may have been the clerk in Whittington's office.

### [VII: The House in Soho](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_secret_adversary_se/chapters/vii-the-house-in-soho)

Mentioned in conversation between Whittington and Boris as a mysterious figure possibly among them.

### [VIII: The Adventures of Tommy](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_secret_adversary_se/chapters/viii-the-adventures-of-tommy)

Referenced as the mysterious leader who works in the dark and is not present in person; the German states he is directed by Mr. Brown.

### [XVI: Further Adventures of Tommy](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_secret_adversary_se/chapters/xvi-further-adventures-of-tommy)

Referred to as the arch-criminal who must approve Tommy's request to see Jane Finn; his power looms over the chapter.

### [XX: Too Late](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_secret_adversary_se/chapters/xx-too-late)

Implied as the adversary; the message left in the packet is signed with his compliments, indicating he has outmaneuvered the protagonists.

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_secret_adversary_se/characters/mr_brown
- Book: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_secret_adversary_se
- All characters: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_secret_adversary_se/characters