M is for murder & mystery

Karen Neville

Posted on

Agatha Christie

Karen Neville

,

‘Queen of Crime’ Agatha Christie lived in Wallingford for 42 years and wrote most of her novels here while living quietly by The Thames. Each September, Wallingford celebrates her with a variety of events

From exhibitions and talks, to ‘who dunnits’ and art workshops, there’s something for everyone to enjoy from September 6th to 8th honouring the best-selling author.

Throughout the weekend the view the special exhibition: “At Home with the Queen of Crime’ which takes you behind the scenes of Agatha’s home life while Ordeal by Innocence features paintings by artist Laura Hope at Wallingford Museum. (Entry by Museum ticket £6). Details Wallingford Museum.

Explore Wallingford in Rhythm and Rhyme with the Queen of Crime – pick up a leaflet from the Town Information Centre, and find the clues on 10 information boards around the town to solve the crossword.

Join a guided walk with a touch of Midsomer Murders and visit Christie’s grave at St Mary’s Church, Cholsey.

Pit your wits at a ‘Murder Mystery’ themed quiz on Friday when you can also listen to an illustrated talk on The Mysteries of Miss Maple. Book in advance at » The Mysteries of Miss Marple.

Join local artist Emma Souter on Saturday for a morning of creativity sketching the statue of Agatha Christie ‘en plein air’ at Kinecroft and why not stay for the Big Picnic with Agath afterwards?

Students from Wallingford School will perform two short murder mystery plays ‘Afternoon at the Seaside’ and ‘The Patient’ on Saturday afternoon.

At A is for Arsenic – the poisons of Agatha Christie, learn about the chemicals Agatha Christie used to kill off her characters and help solve a murder on a day out or evening on the Bunkline working out “who dunnit” in a murder mystery. In the evening experience Murder on the Wallingford Express complete with meal on the train. Watch as the story unfolds, listen out for clues, get those grey cells working, question the cast if you wish to try and piece together the puzzle.

Maritime Murder: A Vintage Voyage Riverboat Experience will feature professional actors bringing to life the gripping tale inspired by the queen of mystery, Agatha Christie. Enjoy treats prepared by the renowned Soph’s Loafs and a pay as you go bar, will be available on board.

The Shellfish Cow will be offering a special murder themed cocktail, Mollies will be holding a Murder Mystery evening on Saturday 7th with a fabulous interactive acting troupe as entertainment and The Keep will be serving up Agatha Christie inspired cocktails.

There are talks and art to get involved in, a special event for children and even an Agatha-inspired run and the chance to enjoy Gosford Park at the Corn Exchange too.

For details on all the events and how to book visit Agatha Christie’s Mystery Weekend

Latest posts

Get the latest news straight to your inbox

Choose which newsletter:

The mystery of Christie

Karen Neville

Posted on

Agatha Christie

Wallingford honours one of its own with the return of events for the Agatha Christie Weekend from September 9th to 11th

Everyone loves a good mystery and without doubt the “Queen of Crime” is Agatha Christie, today almost 50 years after her death her books are still read by millions and adapted for TV, the cinema and stage.

The writer and playwright lived in Winterbrook for over 40 years writing many of her novels featuring sleuths the Belgian, Hercule Poirot and the quintessentially English Miss Marple, here.

The museum’s Agatha Christie exhibition At Home with the Queen of Crime offers a glimpse into her life

The Agatha Christie Weekend begins in Wallingford Museum on the Friday night at 7.30pm, with a Who Dunnit challenge, use clues to find your way around the Museum’s nooks and crannies as well as it’s fascinating exhibits, to learn more about Agatha Christie while detecting the answers to solve the murder!

The museum’s Agatha Christie exhibition At Home with the Queen of Crime offers a glimpse into her life, photos of her home and memories from local people who met her including shop assistants and her staff.

On Saturday, take a guided walk along the Agatha Christie Trail, starting at Wallingford Museum at 10am and finishing at St Mary’s Church in Cholsey, where both Christie and her husband, Max Mallowan, are buried.

In the evening don’t miss the great Murder Mystery Dinner at Cholsey Great Hall. The setting is a wedding reception, so please feel free to dress to impress. You are cordially invited to the impending wedding of Lady Mary Campbell to her betrothed, Jamie Lamont. The Father of the Bride requires you to bear witness… and keep the naughty groom in check, strictly no fighting! Everyone’s a suspect – can you solve the case..?

You’re invited to solve the crime and dine on a delicious three-course dinner provided by The Little Artichoke. Alicensed bar will be available too. Places are selling fast (£40). Find out more at cholseyvillage.com
On Sunday, enjoy a guided walk around Wallingford, taking in some of the town’s historic sites and buildings, as well as its Agatha Christie and Midsomer Murders connections, starting from under the Town Hall at 11am.

For full details of events, costs and bookings please visit wallingfordmuseum.org.uk

Find out more

Find out more in a newly published 42-page fully illustrated book: At Home with Agatha Christie: the Wallingford and Cholsey Connection. The book opens the door to give a rare glimpse of Agatha’s real home at Winterbrook House, drawing on the varied memories of those who knew and met her. These reminiscences have been gathered over the years by local authors Judy Dewey and Tony Rayner who have now brought them together to tell a unique and fascinating story.

The book is available in Wallingford Museum for £8.50, where you can also see the splendid Agatha Christie exhibition and view some of her original hand-written letters, wallingfordmuseum.org.uk

It can also be purchased at www.piepowder.co.uk and some local bookshops.

Get the latest news straight to your inbox

Choose which newsletter:

Brian Blessed

Round & About

Posted on

Agatha Christie

Peter Anderson chats to Brian Blessed, director of Towards Zero at the Mill At Sonning about meeting Agatha Christie and more…

‘A murder is the culmination of a lot of different circumstances all converging at a given time, at a given point. It’s Zero Hour.” So says Superintendent Battle in Agatha Christie’s Towards Zero.

The play begins with the shipping forecast, but the weather does not suddenly happen – it is the result of many influences and other events, in the same way murder does not just happen. Towards Zero is the current play at the Mill at Sonning, and the team are pleased that Brian Blessed, is once again directing one of Christie’s plays.

The “Queen of Crime” wrote it in 1944, when Agatha was married to Max Mallowan and living at Winterbrook, near Cholsey. But it was just over a decade later when a young Brian Blessed met Agatha Christie.

He was just starting his first job at Nottingham Playhouse where they ran a fortnightly repertory company under the artistic director Val May (who was later the artistic director of the Yvonne Arnaud Theatre at Guildford) for the princely sum of £4-19-6 per week.

Agatha Christie was putting on Spiders Web at the Theatre Royal and came to the Playhouse for a look around. In those days the Stage Door opened on to the street.

Agatha and Brian often met up during the following three weeks. She helped him source some props he needed and told him some of her wishes about how her plays should be staged. Some of these, all these years later, Brian has remembered and used at The Mill, including the suit of armour that came to life. Towards Zero was Agatha’s favourite play, he recalls, and that of her good friend Robert Graves, the author of I Claudius.

Sometimes, either before or after their meetings, she was not going back to the theatre but to the police station to see if there had been any interesting murders! She described her meetings with him as relaxing which, for a lady who said that sometimes her head felt like a house where a light was on in at least one room 24 hours a day, must have been a blessing. Sadly, for Brian, her one gift to him apart from the advice a small radio covered in red velvet was taken from his bedsit.

As to what the audience can expect at the Mill, period music and the perpetual ticking of many different clocks as we head to the zero hour. Agatha was not Bran’s only source of advice, for Superintendent Battle, he went back to one of his early television roles – PC “Fancy” Smith on Z Cars.

Get tickets

Towards Zero runs until Saturday, 28th September; visit their website for tickets

Click here

Get the latest news straight to your inbox

Choose which newsletter:

A true Christie classic

Round & About

Posted on

Agatha Christie

Turn sleuth and track down a great weekend of Agatha Christie-inspired activities

If you’re ever fancied yourself as a bit of a sleuth there’s the perfect opportunity to put your skills to the test at this year’s Agatha Christie weekend.

Discover the real-life world of the Queen of Crime who lived in Wallingford and Cholsey for 42 years until her death in 1976 writing many of the novels for which she is best known.

As part of this year’s weekend, unleash you inner Hercule Poirot or Miss Marple and take part in Science Oxford’s CSI Forensic Challenge at Wallingford Museum. With a fresh crime scene, grab your magnifying glass and dusting powder, unravel alibis and solve clues to find out whodunit. Booking is essential for this with sessions at 6.30pm, 7.15pm and 8pm.

Among other events planned for the weekend from Friday, 6th to Sunday, 8th September are a talk at Cholsey Church where she and husband Max Mallowan are buried – Murder Most Flowery will look at Christie’s use of horticulture in the creation and solving of whodunits given by keen gardener and fan, Ruth Brompton-Charlesworth. The talk will take place at Cholsey’s St Mary’s Church, 7.30pm and includes a glass of wine or soft drink, tickets £12.

Across the weekend Wallingford Museum will hold an enhanced exhibition, At home with the Queen of Crime, and in Cholsey Old School enjoy the A is for Agatha art exhibition which will feature work created by artists who each read one of her murder mysteries and then used their own interpretation to depict it.

Agatha Christie

Tickets for all events can be bought from Wallingford Museum or call 01491 651127.

Website

Get the latest news straight to your inbox

Choose which newsletter: