Agatha Christie’s 100-year mystery: New exhibition reveals her life and legacy

A free exhibition at Royal Berkshire Archives explores the life and legacy of crime writer Agatha Christie, marking 100 years since her infamous disappearance in 1926.

The disappearance of Queen of Crime Agatha Christie 100 years ago is perhaps one of the greatest examples of life imitating art – it could well have formed the plot of one of her celebrated novels.

Murder on the Orient Express, Death on the Nile, Evil Under the Sun, The Body in the Library and more than 60 other titles are crime classics but perhaps the greatest mystery is the disappearance of the author herself.

Christie went missing from her Sunningdale home on December 3rd, 1926, after her husband Archibald requested a divorce to be with his mistress. Christie’s car was found abandoned the following day at Newlands Corner, Guildford, and she was subsequently discovered at a hotel in Harrogate on December 14th. Her disappearance remains unsolved to this day.

A new free exhibition at Royal Berkshire Archives in Reading reveals more about the Berkshire resident’s life and legacy, showcasing artefacts and memorabilia belonging to Christie collector Gale Goddard, alongside documents from the archives, including the only known surviving copy of the missing persons poster produced by Wokingham police, pictured above.

Archivist Hannah Pomeroy helped curate the exhibition for the RBA and explains more: “Through the integration of items from both collections, we tell the story of Agatha Christie’s life. This includes her time working as a nurse in the First World War, her famous 11-day disappearance from her home in Sunningdale, and time spent overseas on archaeological digs with her second husband, Max Mallowan.

“Her career as a novelist and playwright is also celebrated through displays, books and programmes. We particularly note The Murder of Roger Ackroyd which marked its 100th anniversary of publication earlier this year. Her two most famous characters, Hercule Poirot and Miss Marple, are featured with busts and displays from various adaptations.”

The exhibition is unique for the RBA with most of the material coming from a private collector rather than its own stores. “We were approached by Gale back in 2023 to see if we would be interested in hosting an exhibition about Agatha Christie. We decided to schedule it for late 2026 to coincide with the 100th anniversary of Agatha Christie’s disappearance, an event we hold material about.”

By summer 2024 most of the items featured in the exhibition had been selected and after visits and advice from Gale, the final exhibits were chosen largely by RBA colleagues Ivone and Rosie.

Hannah tells us: “As with all exhibitions, the aim is to tell a cohesive story with display cases based around different themes. Items are selected for their ability to tell this story and their visual appeal, as well as practically fitting in the allotted space. Gale sent us a list of all the relevant Christie items she had, along with photographs of many of the items. This enabled Ivone and Rosie to select items that best fit the criteria. They also identified items from our own collections relating to Christie’s life in Berkshire that complimented Gale’s collection.”

Gale Goddard had always been a fan of murder mystery stories and found both Christie and her works compelling. In 2005 after watching an adaptation of Five Little Pigs she started collecting Christie memorabilia and various adaptations of her works. After first displaying her collection in 2011, she decided to expand it and the collection now includes the only replica of the Torquay bust of Agatha Christie, left; genuine Orient Express dinner setting and porter’s hat and waistcoat, below; and oil paintings of Agatha Christie, David Suchet as Hercule Poirot, and Joan Hickson as Miss Marple – all of which are featured in the exhibition.

This is Gale’s 15th and last exhibition which Hannah says they are delighted to have been chosen to host. “I hope people get to learn a little more about Agatha Christie as a person and the fascinating life she led. The exhibition is really a chance to appreciate the remarkable woman she was and some of her most famous works and characters.”

Why have Christie’s works endured? Many are still staged – The Mousetrap is the West End’s longest running play – filmed and imitated in continuation novels by authors including Sophie Hannah who has written several featuring Hercule Poirot and Lucy Foley’s Murder at the Grand Alpine Hotel solved by Miss Marple.

“I think first and foremost it is because she was such a brilliant writer, she is the best-selling novelist of all time for a reason!” Hannah continues: “She created many of the tropes and plot devices we still see in murder mystery books, TV series, and films today. Her books, in the main, have withstood the test of time and are as good today as when they were published.

“I personally believe one of the main reasons her books are so good is because of the varied life she led. She was born and raised in the late Victorian/Edwardian era, lived through two world wars, and all the advancements of the 1950s and 60s. During that time, she made a formal debut into society, qualified as a pharmacist, travelled the world (sometimes on her own), drove an ambulance, spent time on archaeological digs in the Near East, and much more. These experiences and her knowledge of different aspects of life and types of people allowed her to create characters and stories that feel real and are so beloved today.”

The exhibition runs until December 18th 2026, Tuesdays to Thursdays 9am – 5pm & Fridays, 9am – 4.30pm.

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