The Queen of Crime's Torbay (Part Three)

A few weeks ago, Lizzie and I ventured out onto the River Dart to visit Greenway, Agatha Christie's holiday home.  The estate is reached by an hour-long ferry ride from Totnes, quite picturesque in the summer sunshine.  With each passing minute on board, you get the feeling that you are heading deeper and deeper into the Devon countryside, the cities and motorways of Britain melting away into the calmly lapping water and birdsong of an unchanged landscape. 

Scenes on the River Dart

 
Agatha Christie and her second husband Max Mallowan bought the Greenway Estate in 1938 on the sale of her childhood home, Ashfield.  She would later describe it as "the loveliest place in the world."  Greenway was the inspiration for her books Dead Man's Folly and Five Little Pigs.  Disembarking, we waste no time in climbing the hill to the estate - we only have three hours before the ferry takes us back again - and we are soon strolling the beautiful grounds.  To me, it's like a wonderful hideaway, somehow very separate from everywhere else, a private paradise in which to enjoy life.  I can see how a writer would thrive here.

National Trust Sign

Greenway House

Inside the house, where photography is forbidden, the rooms are large but homely.  What I didn't realise was that the family were such big fans of collecting - the rooms of Greenway are full of objects, artefacts and curiosities with no apparent theme.  I particularly enjoyed the archaeological aspect to some of the books and exhibits (Max Mallowan was, afterall, a prominent archaeologist who specialised in the Middle East), and the library, which comes complete with a frieze painted by a US Navy officer in 1943.

The library and frieze (scanned from a National Trust postcard)

The inner hall (scanned from a National Trust postcard)

Fascinating though the house is, for me the real jewel of this National Trust property is the grounds.  In the sunshine it is a pleasure to explore the borders and greenhouses, kept wonderfully and colourfully by the gardeners.  It is all too easy to imagine this place fifty years ago on a peaceful summer afternoon, a couple playing tennis on the walled court, or practicing croquet on the lawn.

Scenes from Greenway's gardens

So, what is the final opinion of this Agatha Christie newbie?  As someone who has never pursued an interest in her before, I must say that I'm converted.  Delving into her life, seeing so many local places that were her literal inspiration, exploring a tiny piece of her world, has given me an appetite for more.  Last week at Torquay Museum I bought one of her books - Murder on the Orient Express.  Over the next week or two I'm going to settle down and read it, and report back here with my review.  If I like it - and I hope I will - it could be the first of many Agatha Christie novels I enjoy.

Dame Agatha Christie 1890-1976.  Thank you for sharing with us a piece of your world.