There are two images in my head when I think of Hercule Poirot - David Suchet and this.
The explanation is that in episode 1 of series 4 of my favorite British game show "Taskmaster" the prize task at the start of the show was for the comedians "to bring in the most interesting autograph on the most interesting vegetable" and this is the one that won - "Suchet on a broad bean. Bang. That's what this competition is all about." I have no idea why those words are so funny to me, but there you are. It's probably the fact such a distinguished actor would even do this.
Okay, let's get to David Suchet as Hercule Poirot. Suchet was Poirot for almost 25 years, in 70 episodes from January 1989 to June 2013. And when I say "was" instead of "played", that's exactly what it felt like. He studied him, made a list of "Poirot character notes", and worked on the role until he became the ultimate Poirot in the eyes of many devoted fans (me obviously included).
If you have missed it before, I'm not a fan of Christie's style and I'm not even a fan of all the adaptations with Suchet. There are some I find painfully slow - my brother and I always argue about 45 or 90 minute episodes for crime shows in general and in Poirot's case I often prefer the shorter ones ... BUT I will also slog through the slowest ones for Suchet and the amazing sets. As I love Art Deco, I didn't mind that they got stuck in the 30s for most of the episodes even if it wasn't true to the novel or story. I can absolutely entertain myself not paying any attention to the case - having seen all episodes multiple times, I don't really need to - and look at buildings, cars, furniture or decoration instead.
In the stories I have read I always found Poirot a tad annoying, but while Suchet's Poirot is definitely full of himself, I can forgive him much more easily because he has that gentleness and I love the little smile, how he walks and talks (in English, I hate the German dubbing).
It has been almost exactly two years since I made my last portrait and I've had this pattern lined up even longer than that, but finally I can welcome David Suchet/Hercule Poirot to my fan wall (you can find all of my bead loomed portraits here).
A small warning beforehand - I have a complicated relationship with Agatha Christie which I talked about before. I'm not a fan of her style and despite having read quite a few of her books over my lifetime, I have given up for good now. I also said, however, that I like (most of) her plots and therefore prefer adaptations of her books. Not all of them and not all of them for the same reasons, though - and that brings me to the four Miss Marple movies with the wonderful Dame Margaret Rutherford.
They were my introduction to Agatha Christie as a child and it's always hard to beat cozy memories like a robust old lady fighting crime and still making you laugh. In fact, the movies are still on TV on holidays here, sometimes two at a time, but last Easter it was all four of them ... and although I have the DVD box set, I will watch them if I catch them on TV. Always. I love Rutherford's Miss Marple. Christie purists will no doubt be shocked - it seems to be an endless discussion which Miss Marple is the best - and of course they are right if they say that Rutherford is not at all like the Jane from the books and that the movies don't follow the books! Even Christie disapproved! Shame! I get it. Rutherford herself hesitated to take the role because of the topic. I can be a downright annoying purist myself about books and adaptations, but in this case I couldn't care less (and let's not forget Christie's dedication in "The Mirror Crack'd" - "To Margaret Rutherford, in admiration" - after the two women met). Just hearing the theme makes me happy.
As mentioned, there are four movies.
"Murder She Said" from 1961 is based on the book "4.50 from Paddington". In the book, Miss Marple's friend Mrs McGillicuddy witnesses a murder on a passing train. The police can't find a body, so she turns to Miss Marple for help who sends Lucy Eyelesbarrow, a freelance housekeeper to Rutherford Hall where they suspect the body to be. Miss Marple is described as "an elderly, frail old lady" (elderly and old?). The movie ignores Mrs McGillicuddy and Lucy. Miss Marple witnesses the murder, searches the tracks together with the village librarian Mr Stringer (played by Rutherford's husband Stringer Davis) and takes a post as housekeeper at Ackenthorpe Hall to handle the matter in person.
"Murder at the Gallop" from 1963 is based on "After the Funeral". This happens in the book - after the funeral of Richard Abernethie, his sister Cora comments about him having been murdered. The next day, Cora is found dead and the family lawyer asks Hercule Poirot to investigate. That's right, it's a Poirot novel. In the movie, it's Miss Marple and Mr Stringer who witness the death of the old Mr Enderby and it's Miss Marple who finds Cora's body and then investigates at the "Gallop Hotel" where all the heirs are gathered.
Yes, I did complain about Angela Lansbury's Miss Marple smoking, but give me Rutherford's dancing Miss Marple anytime! 😍
"Murder Most Foul" from 1964 is based on the book "Mrs McGinty's Dead". After the conviction of James Bentley for killing his landlady Mrs McGinty, Superintendent Spence has doubts about his guilt and asks Poirot to look into it in the village where it happened. Mystery writer Ariadne Oliver is there as well. Oh, another Poirot novel. Don't worry, in the movie Miss Marple can solve the case just as well as he could. Here she's the one jury member who has doubts and therefore prevents a verdict. After finding information at Mrs McGinty's house that links to a theater ensemble, she decides to infiltrate it ...
Miss Marple auditioning with "The Shooting of Dan McGrew", a poem Rutherford also liked to recite in real life. I love her capes - they were hers, no costumes - and would love to have one. I'm not the only one!
"Murder Ahoy" from 1964 isn't based on any Christie book but is an original story. Miss Marple is on a board of trustees for the training ship "Battledore". One of the trustees has dropped dead in the middle of a meeting, and after discovering he has been poisoned, Miss Marple doesn't hesitate to check out the ship herself, in full naval outfit of course!
Mr Stringer had a little shock, but of course Miss Marple is prepared
A typical Christie Miss Marple? For me, that's undoubtedly Joan Hickson (who makes an appearance as the day help at Ackenthorpe Hall, by the way). The most fun Miss Marple? That's Margaret Rutherford by far. If you expect a Christie mystery and nothing else, the movies are not for you. Ignore the name Marple and you are in for a treat.
Although Rutherford was 72 when the last film came out, - one reason there are not more of them - she's not "an elderly, frail old lady". She has huge presence and she fills the screen. She's a stubborn and eccentric Miss Marple, not afraid to speak her mind and not easily intimidated by police, suspects or murderers. (Chief) Inspector Craddock - also an invention of the movies - doubting her over and over again only makes her more determined to solve the puzzles that he doesn't even recognize. After all she has read hundreds of mystery novels and is more than prepared. Her success confirms that. Why the police hasn't snapped her up as a counselor, I don't understand.
Mr Stringer who, despite not having as much courage as his fearless leader, never deserts her. Just as Rutherford didn't desert her husband insisting on having him play along her. No Mr Stringer in the books, the role was created specifically for Stringer Davis.
Throughout the movies we also get glimpses into Miss Marple's past life. She can do so much more than knit (which you only see her do once in all of the movies although the inspector almost sits on her knitting project once). Playing golf in the grounds of Ackenthorpe Hall: "I'll have you know that I won the Ladies' Open Handicap in 1921." Showing off her mother's vintage saddle at the Gallop Hotel: "Well, I've done some riding in my time. Junior Silver Spurs Brockbrook 1910." Analyzing the remnants of the dead trustee's snuff with the "Slogums Advanced Chemistry Set for Girls": "Strychnine." In a fencing fight with the killer on the "Battledore": "I was Ladies' National Fencing Champion in 1931."
Is it a wonder that men are falling for her left and right? I'm not joking, no spoilers this time, though.
Most people seem to agree that "Murder She Said" is the best of the movies and after that "Murder at the Gallop". Opinions vary about the other two. I too agree on the first two, but unlike others I prefer "Murder Ahoy" to "Murder Most Foul" which isn't bad, but not as charming in my opinion. Margaret Rutherford, however, is wonderful in all of them. As she says in "Murder Ahoy": "I am always myself. Hmpf." Who wouldn't believe that? Why don't you grab a hot beverage, a blanket, snuggle up on your couch and have a look for yourself?
Surprise! As I said yesterday, Lisa changed movies for this week. I had already written my post on "The Mirror Crack'd", but why not add at least a quick one for "Death on the Nile"? Let me say first that like Margaret Rutherford isn't the Miss Marple of the books, Peter Ustinov doesn't fit the description of Hercule Poirot of the books in my opinion. But what can I say? I love Peter Ustinov (and am still sad about missing the chance to see him live once)! So I actually watch "Death on the Nile" every time I catch it on TV, for him and some of the others in the star-studded cast.
I'll try to keep the plot short (still with spoilers, though) because most of you probably know it, anyway.
Jackie and Simon are engaged. As Simon needs a job, Jackie asks her friend Linnet, an heiress, to hire him. Linnet does, Simon and she fall in love and get married. Jackie follows them on their honeymoon to Egypt and joins the cruise on the Nile. One evening she gets drunk and shoots Simon in the leg. The next morning, Linnet is found dead in her cabin. Of course, Poirot is asked to investigate among the many suspects all of who have their reasons to fear or hate Linnet. The only ones with an alibi are Simon who was in bed due to his injury and Jackie who had been sedated by a doctor on board after the shooting incident. Two more people get killed, Linnet's maid Louise who had probably tried to blackmail the perpetrator and Mrs. Otterbourne who announces to have seen Louise's killer, but gets shot before she can say the name. In the end, Poirot gathers everyone how he likes to do and reveals that everything has been Jackie's brilliant plan. She and Simon had always been lovers and just wanted Linnet's money. Jackie had pretended to shoot Simon and ensured he was left alone long enough to kill Linnet and then shoot his own leg for his alibi. Jackie killed Louise and then Mrs. Otterbourne. Jackie confesses everything and embraces Simon. Poirot notices too late that she has grabbed the pistol to shoot Simon and herself.
I admit that I don't think the plan was that brilliant. It depended too much on luck and coincidence for my taste, and if I hatched a murder plan, I wouldn't want to rely on luck. Nevertheless, I enjoy the movie, with all the weak spots. Let me present the passengers, their motives, and my opinion on them.
David Niven is Colonel Race who's helping Poirot with the investigation. He's on board because of ...
... George Kennedy as Andrew Pennington, Linnet's US trustee who's trying to hide having embezzled money.
Jane Birkin as the maid not treated well by Linnet.
Bette Davis as Mrs. Van Schuyler who is very keen on Linnet's gorgeous pearl necklace (which is missing, but is brought back) ...
... and Maggie Smith as her companion Miss Bowers whose family was ruined by Linnet's father.
Angela Lansbury as the novelist Salome Otterbourne who has been sued by Linnet for a book she has written about her, and Olivia Hussey as her daughter Rosalee.
Jack Warden as Dr. Bessner who is afraid of being called out as a quack.
Jon Finch as James Fergusson who despises all rich people (definitely the weakest motive to kill Linnet).
I enjoy this movie not so much only as a whodunit, but for the sets, the costumes, the acting, and the comedy. The production design was lavish, the scenery beautiful, that often helps to distract from a movie starting a bit slow, in this case with the backstory and the introduction of all the suspects. The acting is wonderful. Ustinov may not be completely the image of Poirot I have in my head (especially knowing Suchet), but I still love how he portrays him. Niven was very English and charming. Warden's accent was terrible, but you get that a lot with German accents in English productions. Finch and Hussey are quite forgettable, but that has more to do with the roles than the acting. So was Kennedy. Davis and Smith were fantastic together - not a surprise - and they had some of the best lines. I loved it. And no one tell me Lansbury didn't have loads of fun with her role, the drunk writer of steamy "romance" novels! You get the first idea of that when she's introduced and dances tango with poor Colonel Race.
I said I was going to make this one short, so this is it from me. If you want more, go check out Lisa's post!
Lisa from Boondock Ramblings is doing the Summer of Angela (Lansbury) on her blog which I participate in if I can. For today she had chosen "The Mirror Crack'd" named after the shortened US title of Agatha Christie's book "The Mirror Crack'd from Side to Side", but she then switched to "Death on the Nile", still Christie, but of course with Hercule Poirot.
Here's the plot (with spoilers). St Mary Mead, 1953. A Hollywood production team arrives to make a film about Mary, Queen of Scots, and Queen Elizabeth I., played by two rival actresses, Marina Rudd whose husband is the director Jason Rudd, and Lola Brewster whose husband is the producer, Marty N. Fenn. The Rudds have arranged a village fête. Miss Marple is there as well, but an unlucky incident ends up in her twisting her ankle. Some of the fête helpers are invited to the house, among them Heather Babcock. She tells Marina the story how she had seen her on stage during the war despite being sick and that she even got to kiss Marina on the cheek. Marina offers her a cocktail which gets spilled, so Marina gives her her own drink which kills Heather. Everyone thinks Marina was the intended victim, even more so when she presents some threatening letters.
Inspector Craddock, Miss Marple's nephew, tries to find out who the murderer was, of course discussing the case with his aunt as well whose injury confines her to her house. Then Rudd's secretary Ella is killed as well.
In the end, Miss Marple goes to the Rudds' house to find that Marina is dead. Jason confesses to having killed her with poison in the hot chocolate which has not been touched, however. So it seems Marina has committed suicide. The reason is that she had contracted rubella through Heather's kiss, a disease that is quite harmless - except in a pregnancy. Marina had born a child with brain damage as a consequence.
You may notice that my description of the plot is shorter than usual. I'll make the rest short as well ... I don't like the movie. I had seen it before and I didn't like it then, either. It had been a while, though, and I could change my mind, couldn't I? No, I couldn't.
We have a star cast. Beside Liz Taylor and Kim Novak as the rivaling actresses, there are Rock Hudson as Jason, Tony Curtis
as Marty, Geraldine Chaplin as Ella, and of course Angela Lansbury as
Miss Marple. I didn't feel the story was worth of them, however, even if this movie wasn't made at the peak of their careers. There are a few funny scenes between Liz Taylor and Kim Novak. Tony Curtis seemed to have a lot of fun with his scenes, too. My first idea of a Miss Marple story is not watching it for the fun, though, even if it can be a nice extra. Rock Hudson was quite subdued and didn't make much of an impression.
All in all, the story dragged and I kept thinking "Get on with it already!". It was like floating through beautiful settings - around the village, in Miss Marple's huge (!) garden to the lovely rooms in the big house where the Rudds live - with the appropriate music, but wasn't there something else? Oh right, there were two murders. There wasn't any suspense or much development. Hadn't Miss Marple injured her ankle, I'm sure she would have solved this case in three minutes instead of having to wait for her nephew to bring her up-to-date on the interviews with the people involved. She could even have prevented the second murder, who knows? Not that that seemed to be very important because Ella's murder wasn't even mentioned anymore at the end. I guess it wasn't that interesting if you could see the dead Marina instead, beautifully draped on a chaiselongue with a yellow rose in her hand.
What really annoyed me, though, was Miss Marple herself. According
to Wikipedia (I found the article, but didn't have access), the
director Guy Hamilton said that Margaret Rutherford, Miss Marple in four
movies, "was a divine clown but she was no more Miss Marple than ...
fly to the moon (I have absolutely no idea what's that supposed to mean). We are doing Miss Christie's Miss Marple, a more
serious person, a gossip, a bit of a snob. And she doesn't fall off her
bicycle into the village duckpond". Granted, Rutherford's Marple was
nothing like in the books and Christie was not a fan of the adaptations,
but nevertheless she admired Rutherford's professionalism and even
dedicated this particular novel to her. I love Rutherford, maybe I'll write a post about her sometime.
The problem is that Lansbury wasn't a good Miss Marple, in my opinion. Part of it was definitely that she wasn't even around as much because the big stars took center stage (again, without having the story for it). Also Lansbury didn't come close to some of the other Miss Marples (I'm in the Joan Hickson team although I don't enjoy all the episodes), both in looks as in behavior. The way they aged her was terrible. I kept looking at her wondering what they had done with her eyebrows and why. And then there was this ... who thought this was a good idea?
I can't say anything about the differences between the movie and the book because I have never read it. I know that Marina didn't take her husband's name in the novel, her name was Gregg, and what's really funny is that the German dubbing (I couldn't watch the film in English) actually used that name.
My conclusion is that if you want to see two stars exchanging "niceties", go for those few scenes and have fun with them, but if you want to see a Miss Marple movie, I'd say just skip this one. Excuse me now while I retreat to be annoyed a little longer 😂
Agatha Christie was born in Torquay on September 15, 1890 as the youngest of three siblings in a wealthy upper middle class family. Although it wasn't encouraged by her mother, she learned reading at the age of four, and she was home-schooled in reading, writing, basic arithmetics, and music. At the age of 11 she lost her father, a year later she started attending a local school, and when she was 15, her mother sent her to Paris where she completed her education. When she came home again, she and her sick mother decided to spend three months in Egypt.
In 1912, Agatha was introduced to Archibald Christie whom she married in 1914. While Archie was in France during the war, Agatha first volunteered in a hospital and then qualified as an apothecary assistant working at the dispensary which inspired her to use poisoning as the method in her first detective story featuring Hercule Poirot, the Belgian detective who had come to England as a refugee.
In 1922, the Christies joined Major Belcher's promotional tour for the British Empire Exhibition. During this tour they learned for example how to surf and were among the first Britons to surf standing up. I don't know about you, but the picture of an old/er Agatha is so ingrained in my mind that I have a hard time imagining her on a surfboard, but she enjoyed surfing thoroughly.
In
1926, Archie asked Agatha for a divorce after falling in love with a
friend of Major Belcher's, Nancy Neele. After a row, Agatha disappeared
which of course led to a huge news story, but also to an extensive
search with hundreds of police officers, thousands of volunteers, and even
aeroplanes. 11 days later, she was found at a hotel where she had
registered under a false name. She never gave an explanation and
opinions about whether she disappeared in a fugue state or consciously
are divided. Public reaction was mainly negative, also due to the costs
of the extensive search. The divorce went through in 1928, Agatha retained custody
of their only child, Rosalind.
In autumn of 1928, Agatha travelled to
Istanbul with the Orient Express and on to Baghdad where archeologist Leonard
Woolley and his wife Katharine, who was a fan of her novels, invited her to the site of Ur. She became friends with them and they invited her to return in 1930. During that
second trip, she met Woolley's assistant who was ordered by Katharine to take Christie on a conducted tour of the country - Max Mallowan who was 13
years younger than her. The way she took everything during that tour in good humor, even getting stuck in the sand of a dry river valley, convinced him that she would make a wonderful life companion, and so he proposed to her just six months later. This was the beginning of a second life on a different continent for Agatha beside that of a successful writer. Katharine Woolley, however, didn't want another wife at the site which is probably the reason why the couple went to Nineveh next. In "Murder in Mesopotamia", which Christie - she used the name Mallowan outside her writing career - dedicated to the Woolleys, the victim was inspired by Katharine. According to Mallowan's biographer Henrietta McCall, Katharine was aware that the as difficult portrayed character was based on her and enjoyed the notoriety.
In 1932/33, Max and Agatha worked on their first own dig in Tall Arpachiyah near Nineveh. Both Agatha's celebrity status as a writer and her money helped Max' archeological career as this was the time when digs still had to be sponsored with private money, at least partially. During the season - fall and spring - they were at the sites, in summer they were in England with Rosalind, and the rest of the time they spent either traveling or staying at home. Max led the excavations, Agatha, who had taken a drawing course, started by doing drawings, but that wasn't really her thing. So instead she wrote in the morning, in the afternoon she recorded finds and put together broken ceramics. In 1934, they travelled to Egypt and took a Nile River cruise which inspired one of her most famous novels, Death on the Nile.
Eventually they moved on to digs in Syria. Agatha found her role by becoming the official photographer which was a hard, exhausting, and demanding task, both the photographing itself, but also the developing of the negatives. She didn't just take pictures, however, but also filmed, black/white and in color. In 1937, she even took a photography course in London which led to more creative experiments, not to her husband's joy as he would have preferred purely scientific photos to creative ones.
Part of their team in Syria for several years was the young architect Robin Macartney who not only assisted by drawing finds, maps, and plans, but also designed an expedition house. Fascinated by Macartney's drawings, Christie asked him to design a book cover for her. In the end, he designed four dust-wrappers between 1936 and 1938. What she liked best about them was that each cover told something about the story by using elements from it, such as the Ramesses II statues and the Nile cruise steamer for "Death on the Nile", and I totally understand that because it seems to be a concept that publishers struggle with from covers I have seen myself.
Excavations came to a halt when WW II broke out, but after the war they came to Nimrud, a site Mallowan had long had his eye on. He became the first director of the British School of Archaeology and thus secured the necessary support for the excavation. The couple was there throughout the 50s, they lived in the School's building, and while Agatha had a small writing room added to the team house, she also assisted again by collecting, recording, and cleaning artifacts, taking photographs, and restoring ceramics.
Joop van Bilsen for Anefo CC0, via Wikimedia Commons
If you read my introduction about the "Queens of Crime", you will not be surprised that I'm starting this with Agatha Christie after being so sure you would know my first author. Actually the title "Queen of Crime" has been trademarked by her estate in 2013. Christie wrote 66 detective novels, 14 short-story collections, plays, poetry, and two autobiographies. Under the pseudonym of Mary Westmacott she even wrote a few romantic novels. Only Shakespeare's works and the Bible have been sold more than her books. First of all let me say that I haven't read all of Christie's books myself, simply because her writing style isn't always my cup of tea. To be more precise, some of her books were downright boring to me and I gave up eventually. There, I said it. Don't hold my own style against me, I'm not a professional. Now you could argue that it's not unusual for authors who have written a lot to have a few duds, and your dud may not feel like one to another reader. However, it made me wonder if something was wrong with me for not getting how great a writer she was, no matter how I tried.
My first Christie book as a kid was probably "The Murder on the Links" because I remember we had that one at home. No idea if it was the only one, but I borrowed a few more from the library, never as my first choice, though. Of course we had already watched the movies with Margaret Rutherford then, and although I'm ususally no fan of adaptations straying too far from the books and Rutherford was not at all like the books' Miss Marple, I love them all.
When
I started my library training, the first book I checked out
from my library was one of Christie's autobiographies. I read a lot of
biographies back then, but couldn't get into hers, absolutely not
because her life was boring, but because of the
writing style. That's the first time I really noticed it.
Next came the TV shows "Partners in Crime" about the Beresfords and "Miss Marple" with Joan Hickson which aired in 1986 in Germany. We only had three TV channels at the time and were of course excited for
a new episode every week. Back then I still added the date of purchase
in my books and 1986 was actually the year when I bought the Christie
books that I still own now, so there was definitely a connection. That's also the reason for my mentioning the shows. Christie's books have not just been adapted for TV or movies, but also radio, video games, graphic novels, and more. Unfortunately, I found those two adaptations
not as exciting anymore years later. Mind you, to me Joan Hickson really is Miss Marple, in looks and acting, but the episodes
could have been tighter if you know what I mean. Although British crime shows are my favorites and I don't mind a slow pace, there are some that are just too slow for me. Isn't the opening perfect, though? I also love the music.
Then there was Hercule Poirot - Albert Finney (superb) and Peter Ustinov (always
wonderful, but not my idea of Poirot) - and eventually David Suchet. When we discovered Suchet, the ex also started buying Christie books, mostly the
Poirot novels of course, both as audiobooks and in print. He devoured them, I tried and gave up once more. Suchet
makes Poirot lovable despite his quirks and high opinion of himself
while I didn't like the book Poirot much - which is fine, Christie
herself didn't. My hope was the short stories would do the trick, but even they took me countless bubble baths. I
had to face not being a real fan. The Miss Marple TV
adaptations with Geraldine McEwan and Julia McKenzie didn't help,
either. Heck, although I love Suchet's Poirot, Hastings, and the others, even some of those episodes are too slow for me, but I still watch them
for him and of course the amazing production design.
Now you may wonder why I didn't just stay away from Christie completely. The
point is that I like the idea of it all, the puzzle, the settings, the
plots. A part of me seems to hold on to the hope that I too will finally
see the light, you could say 🤪 Not sure what that says about me. Maybe it just needs the right book ...
Over the years, I more than once felt I needed to defend myself for that unpopular opinion, so for this post I looked for the first time if there are others who feel the same way as me. Of course there are, and there are long discussions and a lot of opinions, new and old - which book they should read to change their mind, that they are simply stupid (welcome to the Internet), detailed explanations why Christie is so brilliant, or that crime fiction per se is stupid ("With so many fine books to be read, so much to be studied and know, there is no need to bore ourselves with this rubbish." (Edmund Wilson)) Then I read this in a blogger's book review: "I'm very particular about the mysteries I read, I don't want them to try to be a literary novel with a side of murder mystery, but simply a puzzle." I like to say I'm not a fan of terribly long descriptions, but thinking about it, it rather seems to depend on the descriptions, so it's hard to pinpoint what "terribly long" really is for me. Maybe my expectations were too high? Hm. So I grabbed "Why Didn't They Ask Evans?" from my book cabinet - simply for the puzzle, but although I made it through, it didn't blow me away. Maybe I just remembered the plot too well? I'll probably have to try a book I don't know at all yet.
Of course, all of this is only my personal opinion. If you love Agatha Christie, that's perfectly fine with me, after all I'm not Edmund Wilson 😉
Anyhow, what I definitely find interesting is Agatha Christie's life beyond that of a writer, but that will be the topic for another post.
