I went to England in September 2026 for an
interesting learning experience… a tour
organized by the Smithsonian to learn about mystery writers in England. First
to Devon to visit Agatha Christie’s summer home, and then lots more stops at
many locales in which mystery books have been set.
On the road to Torquay, looming up over the Salisbury
plains…Stonehenge! The road purposely narrows to one lane on each side so
motorists can gawk and take photos. There are obviously tours that allow a walk
near this prehistoric structure, but our group just fortuitously drove by since
our direct highway (the M4) from London to Torquay was closed today…
Pippi Longstocking likes the view over Tor Bay from our
hotel on the cliffside of Torquay. Torquay and two other towns constitute what
the English call “the English Riviera.” It was quite a popular place for
vacationing in the time of Agatha Christie, for example, but fell into a bit of
a slump, and has since been revived during Covid when people wanted to get away
from big cities and enjoy some fresh air. Lots of timeshare apartments near
here!
The first day of the mystery writer tour organized by
Smithsonian as a visit to the Church of Saint Mary the Virgin, where Agatha
Christie regularly attended mass. The bellringers in the church were there for
practice, so we got to see how that mechanism worked.
Agatha Christie sponsored the creation of the main window
in the church, making certain that it told cheerful stories that would appeal
to children.
after visiting Agatha Christie’s local church, our tour
group proceeded by motorcoach across Devon, seeing marvelous scenery, and
finally we arrived at Greenway, the summer home of Agatha Christie.
Exploring Greenway, Agatha Christie’s summer home, turned
up lots of information about not only her life, but the life of her family, and
an illustration of furnishings and traditional ways of living in the early
1900s. It was the setting for these books: Five Little Pigs, Dead Man’s Folly,
and Ordeal by Innocence.
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| The kitchen at Greenway |
The china cabinet with far too many items in it! Seems the family could not bear to part with
anything… but a placard gave this excuse….
“During the 1950’s the family spent their summers at Greenway and
indulged their passion for collecting with forays to local salesrooms to
acquire books, silver, Tunbridgeware, Mauchlinware, paper mache, silk pictures
and Bargeware. Rosalind and Antony
Hicks (Rosalind was Agatha’s daughter…)
added their own modern pieces to the collections at Greenway, studio glass,
studio pottery and modern pictures .
Anthony continued to add to the Tunbridgeware collection, a passion he
shared with Agatha. They enjoyed
supporting local artists and craftsmen and women.
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| The living room at Greenway |
Of course, you would want to see the library of this
famous author. In the video below, you can hear her grandson talk about what it
was like to be in this room.
A detail that explains more about the use of the library
and the painted frieze around the top of the room.
To see the tour of the library….
or
Go to https://www.facebook.com/592039044/videos/pcb.10167697247154045/3040962276246311
More delights to happen upon in Greenway!
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| Agatha's closet |
Although I searched for it, I did not see the portable
toilet seat which Agatha Christie insisted on taking on her travels… Maybe
another time. But no English house tour
is complete without looking at the loo.
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| The inevitable photo of the loo.... |
At Greenway - you can listen to a brief audio clip of
Agatha Christie talking about her writing, when you visit her bedroom.
To hear the audio clip,
Or https://www.facebook.com/592039044/videos/pcb.10167697261504045/2088198875390326
NEXT -- not my favorite stop on this tour, but I suppose
it fits in with the theme of “crime” and “mystery.”. A visit to Dartmoor
prison. The prison was formed from the capture of many Napoleonic soldiers
during the Napoleonic war of 1803, and also American prisoners of war were
notoriously kept here after the war of 1812. The prison was recently
decommissioned. It is located in a very isolated place, across the moors as you
can see. For more background information, go to https://janeaustenslondon.com/.../the-ghost-of-a.../
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| Entry gate to Dartmoor Prison |
Traveling across Dartmoor back to Torquay there is beautiful
brooding scenery, peppered with enormous granite tors, sheep, ponies, cattle,
wet places, and a vast sweep of misty gray sky. Sir Arthur Conan Doyle set his
great story “The Hound of the Baskerville” here.
The Torquay Museum has a very interesting small
exhibition dedicated to Agatha Christie, who was born in this town. When Agatha
Christie’s first novel was published in 1920, nobody could’ve predicted how
successful she would be. In fact, she has been outsold only by the Bible and
Shakespeare, making her a truly iconic author. Her books, translated into over
100 languages, have sold around 3 billion copies worldwide, and UNESCO has
confirmed her as the most translated author ever. Her impressive literary
output included over 80 detective and mystery titles, six romantic novels, 5
radio plays and 15 stage plays as well as two autobiographical works.
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| So many books! In so many lanugages! |
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| A small but compelling museum room! |
Welcome to the first day of autumn in Devon! Our group
took a ride on a boat down the Dart river to Dartmouth.
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| Cruising along the Dart River |
Finally, Dartmouth!
So important to peel away from a group once in a while.
Which is what I did when we got to Dartmouth. Found this enchanting Café on a
side street, and had one of the most delicious desserts. I’ve tasted in a while
– – a Basque cheesecake.
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| A Basque Cheesecake, in all its yummy glory! |
A trip on the Dartmouth Steam Railway for a journey along
the spectacular Devon coast; this journey was made famous by Hercule Poirot,
Agatha Christie’s charismatic Belgian detective. The route follows the
spectacular coast past picturesque stations that were featured in Christie’s
book “The ABC Murders”.
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| Views from the train |
NEXT -- A driving tour of the Cotswolds as we head
towards Oxford. First stop is the charming village of Bibury, which gained some
fame when Emperor Hirohito of Japan stopped here in the 1920s and lauded the
village’s beauty. Today, it is a favorite tourist stop, and apparently many
Japanese couples come here for weddings.
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| Sometimes you get lucky and take a great photo.... |
Finally we have time to spend in Oxford!
Scenes from a walking tour of Oxford, where many mystery
books have been set. This lovely university town deserves many days of
exploration. That goes on the “to do “ list!
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| My Latin is rusty, but a school of philosophy? |
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| The Radcliffe Camera in Oxford |
The History of
Science Museum in Oxford is the world‘s oldest public museum building. It was
opened in 1683 by the Duke of York, who was later King James the VII and II, as
the original Ashmolean Museum. Its purpose was the study of natural philosophy,
what we now call science.
J. R. R. Tolkien, author of Lord of the Rings, worked in
the museum’s central gallery for two years.
For over 30 years, artist John Russell (1745 to 1806)
studied the moon through his telescope. Russell made moon globes for sale to
the public. This one demonstrates lunar libration, the rocking motion of the
moon. There are no drawings on the back of the globe, because the same side of
the moon always remains facing the Earth. Russell did not sell many globes.
This is one of the few that survive today
A perfect end to a day in Oxford is at The Morse Bar
where my beloved Inspector Morse used to come for a pint or two. Alas, he is no
more (except he will live forever in the TV series and in the books by Colin
Dexter) but it’s comforting to be here anyhow.
The Randolph Hotel, which contains THE MORSE BAR.
On the way out of Oxford, we cross over part of the
Thames River
NEXT –
Chenies Manor house has been the site of
various films, including a Bleak House adaptation of the novel by Charles
Dickens; some Netflix episodes of The Crown, various episodes of Midsommer
Murders, etc … the list is long! There were lots of rooms and history to see on
our private tour: here is a sample ~
Our visit included an opportunity to tour the
lovely gardens. The current owners host many weddings and events here on these
beautiful grounds.
History:
The Manor House at Chenies has a rich and interesting history, with
links to royalty over its circa 800 year timeline.
The Cheyne family owned the manor from 1185,
although in the late 13th century the family were obliged to surrender the
manor to Edward I in payment of debts.
There are some surviving documents referring
to Edward’s ownership of the manor, including a royal visit to Chenies before
Easter of 1290.
The accounts list the preparations of the
Easter feast in detail, and mention the boiling of 450 eggs for distribution to
the locals. Possibly the first mention of giving eggs as a gift at Easter.
By 1296 Sir John Cheyne was able to win back
his ancestral lands and he built a fortified brick manor house, part of which
can be seen today in the crenulated buildings.
By 1526, the house passed, by marriage, to
the Russell family
A tour of Chenies house included some time in the Church
of Saint Michael, located on the grounds. This is a working church part of the
Church of England, or if we would call it stateside, Protestant Episcopal. As
the tombs area in the church was not open to visit, I scraped some photos of
the Internet to share with you.
Nearing the end of the tour, we return to London (our tour started in …ugh… of all places, the
departures lounge at Heathrow…. Really …. Smithsonian could do better than
that, I thought! )
Finally in London - Pippi Longstocking has an interesting
view! The walls outside our London hotel on Cooper's Row near the Tower Bridge
area are nearly 2,000 years old, with the base dating back to around 200 AD
during the Roman occupation of Londinium. The Roman lower section was built
features characteristic red bonding tiles and Kentish ragstone. The upper
section was added and rebuilt during the Medieval period for enhanced defense,
making the structure taller and incorporating architectural features like archer
loopholes.
Walking around the West End before our group goes to see
a performance of the famous Agatha Christie play, The Mousetrap, I was
delighted to see the beautiful lanterns over a Chinatown Street.
Next stop…. A morning visit to Covent Garden. This lively
marketplace was featured in an investigation by Sherlock Holmes in “The
Adventure of the Blue Carbuncle.“ We are a bit early, as some of the side
markets are just opening up, but the street performers are already in full
swing. Lots of interesting little historic shops here.
Click here or scan QR code to hear this opera performer
as Covent Garden began to open up….
https://www.facebook.com/592039044/videos/pcb.10167719990664045/1074845555340582
To see part of this street artist performance, go to….
https://www.facebook.com/592039044/videos/pcb.10167719990664045/1380515090962345
NEXT a visit to the Bow Street Police Museum just outside
Covent Garden, where we learn more about the Bow Street Runners and the
Metropolitan Police officers who patrolled the streets of 18th century London.
On display were some of the tools of their trade – – a lantern, and a warning
rattle. Many famous prisoners moved through the cells of this prison, including
Oscar Wilde. For more information, visit the museum website: https://bowstreetmuseum.org.uk/about-us/history/
As we move through London on last day of the tour, we
passed Charing Cross Underground station. In the forecourt of the station is
the original Charing Cross…”The original Charing Cross was a medieval stone
monument erected by King Edward I in 1290 to mark the final resting place of
the funeral procession for his wife, Queen Eleanor of Castile”
In a walk around the Ciy of Westminster area in London.
we pass the Twinings tea shop. It is the smallest shop in London, reputedly.
Located at 216 Strand, it is London's oldest continuously trading tea shop,
operating as the world's first dry tea and coffee establishment since 1706. You
can pop in for a complementary cup of tea, and taste several types no time to
do that on this trip, but in the future…!
NEXT our Mystery Writers Smithsonian tour concentrates on
the legal profession in London. We passed the Royal Courts of Justice building,
a Gothic Revival masterpiece of lofty pinnacles, and turret-topped towers that
is very much the epicenter of Legal London.
Our destination is the Inns of Court, which is the center
of London’s law profession and featured in PD James’ book “A Certain Justice”.
The Temple Church within the Inns of Court. There is a
rich history of this church, connected to the Knights Templar.
We end our visit to the Inns of Court with lunch at
Middle Temple Hall. In this Elizabethan era dining hall, one of the first
performance of Shakespeare’s “The Comedy of Errors“ took place.
NEXT - Be sure to
wear good walking shoes if you go on the guided tour in the Houses of
Parliament. It’s an interesting tour, where you learn the history and
heritage of the United Kingdom‘s governmental system, but it’s a long tour and
there are very few places to rest along the way. However, just for the fun of
it, I took a photo of one of the stalls in the ladies bathroom near the gift
shop. It’s not often that you have a bathroom that shares arches from the
1800’s. No photos inside the Houses of Parliament are allowed, but when you
exit, it is noteworthy to look at the “New Dawn “ clock. More about the clock
here: https://heritagecollections.parliament.uk/exhibits/new-dawn/
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| The ladies loo….and old columns too… |
A visit to Highgate Cemetery, which could easily have
served as a backdrop for an Agatha Christie novel,and has been featured on such
mystery shows as Waking the Dead, MI-5, and Luther. With its sinuous paths
winding up a steep wooded hill, past Ivy-clad monuments, it is perhaps the most
famous of London’s “magnificent seven“ burial grounds. Its occupant history has
ranged from distinguished to notorious, and its residents include Karl Marx,
and Adam Worth who was the criminal mastermind widely considered to be Sir
Arthur Conan Doyle’s inspiration for Sherlock Holmes’s evil Professor
Morriarity.
A little history of Highgate cemetery, which is one of
the earliest private garden cemeteries in England. Until the 1800s, most
burials had taken place in church, graveyards, but by the 1820s those had
become so overcrowded, indecent, and unsanitary that a new solution had to be
found. Outbreaks of cholera and typhoid made action more urgent. People who
were not members of the church of England also wanted somewhere they could bury
their dead according to their own rites. Private companies stepped in, and inspired
by a famous cemetery in Paris, they set up beautiful garden cemeteries on the
edges of towns for people of all denominations. Eight such cemeteries were set
up around London. Highgate was the third to open, in 1839.
And that’s the end of the tour….. but I had a few more
days in London…. And so….
Although the wait lines are long, and the exhibition in
my opinion is not particularly well sign-posted, it’s always interesting to see
the Crown jewels. I was unaware that you’re not supposed to take photos until a
fellow tourist pointed that out to me, but here are just a few snaps.
Afterwards, walking around the Tower of London grounds,
lots of interesting things to see. If I had a cannon, I would certainly want it
to be as nicely ornamental as this one! And oh, it’s going to rain shortly. For
the past week, the weather has been really good.
Many years ago, as we see from this illustration of its
extent in the 1300’s, the Tower was surrounded by a moat. Not today. It’s all
walkways crowded with tourists. But when you exit — wow, right there is the
Thames River. And within shouting distance, the Tower Bridge.
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| This is a real photo and I took it! |
And now, onward!
A few days in London and then a flight to Venice….and a train trip
through the Balkans to Istanbul…. See the next part of my 41 days away from
home at :
