It sounds like a plot out of one of his scintillating crime novels – a multi-millionaire author impersonated, taken advantage of, by a shameless, scheming social media personality desperate for clicks.
But for author of The Thursday Murder Club Richard Osman, this latest twist in his murder mystery series may have hit a little bit too close to home.
The presenter-turned-novelist, 54, was this week forced to take to social media to reveal the truth behind a shady scheme which appears to be attempting to piggyback off of his fame – a brand new TikTok account claiming to be from the man himself.
Osman told his followers on Monday that an account set up in his name is posting clips of him and even talking to other users as if it is the author himself.
But, he says, he has had no part in it. And now he needs the help of his own fan club of amateur sleuths to spread the word.
Osman wrote on Instagram yesterday: ‘A little heads-up to anyone on TikTok. This account is pretending to be me and is chatting to other users.
‘It is, definitively, not me. I have no idea how TikTok works (I don’t REALLY understand how Instagram works) but do please avoid/report/relentlessly spam if you come across this account. Thanks all!’
The TikTok account appears to have been set up at the beginning of October and has been sharing posts ever since.
The mystery man (or woman) behind the account makes no mention of the fact they are not actually Osman.
Describing themselves in their bio, they say: ‘Bestselling author of The Thursday Murder Club series, Master of witty mysteries & cozy crime, Making murder charming’.
The account features a series of clips or posts previously seen on Osman’s official social media pages including Instagram and X, frequently copying the same captions as the author has written himself.
And whoever is behind the screen has even been spotted interacting with unwitting fans on the platform by responding to their comments, thanking them for their praise and claiming to have messaged them privately.
Fortunately for unsuspecting fans of Osman and The Thursday Murder Club series, the account so far has little traction with just over 200 followers and less than 100 views on most of its videos.
After the Mail contacted TikTok for comment, the account appeared to have been taken down.
But some have still been caught up in the scheme and appear to believe they are interacting with the genuine Richard Osman.
On his actual social media, the former Pointless presenter posted a photograph of the fake account’s handle and urged his followers to report it to TikTok.
Some saw humour in the situation, with one commenting: ‘So I DON’T get a leading role in the next Thursday Murder club film if I transfer 1500 pounds to your account? DAMN!’
Osman’s appeal to fans comes just weeks after he spoke out about controversy concerning Netflix’s movie adaptation of The Thursday Murder Club.
Appearing on ITV’s this morning, he addressed viewer disappointment over changes made to the plot which altered the motives behind the murder.
Richard told the programme’s presenters that he had made alternative suggestions during filming, but that these had fallen on deaf ears.
However, he added: ‘I’ve written my version of the book and it’s available in all bookshops and it’ll be there forever and there in 100 years time, that’s my version, that’s the version that comes from my heart.
‘I’m not gonna be the person that sits down and does the adaptation for a film because I’ve done it already, so you have to give it to the brilliant people and they’ve got to do a two-hour version of this thing.
‘If you wrote down everything that was in the book, it would just be Joyce wittering on for four and a half hours and everyone would switch off, so you have to let other people do their version of it.
‘They have to make choices that you wouldn’t necessarily make yourself, and that’s the fun thing.’
TikTok has been contacted for comment.
