Alan Carr's Adventures with Agatha Christie

-All aboard "Alan Carrs Adventures with Agatha Christie"!

Forward!

Agatha Christie is the greatest crime writer of all time.

Ever since I read one of her novels on a rainy family holiday in Devon at the age of 13, I've been hooked.

Now... [ Horn honks ] Hello!

...I'm on a literary journey of a lifetime to discover my favorite childhood author...

This is classic Agatha Christie.

...and two of her most beloved characters -- Miss Marple... Oh, ain't I pretty?

...and, of course, Poirot.

[ As Poirot ] I intend to use my little gray cells.

Agatha Christie wrote 66 detective novels throughout her life... Ooh, that's good, that.

...and became one of the most successful novelists of all time.

[ Cork pops ] Oh!

On the way, I will be meeting friends, family, and fans of this national treasure... -Alan.

-Hello.

...to explore the woman behind the pages... Would you say she is eccentric?

-She was one of a kind.

-...and follow in the footsteps of her favorite characters...

Et voil.

...to see if 100 years on... Wow, look at this place.

...Agatha brings as much joy to the next generation as she did for me.

Agatha Christie created one of the sharpest female sleuths of all time.

She was smart, she was tough, and she ran rings 'round the police.

But she wore tweed?

And she knitted?

Who is this woman?

Let me tell you.

It's Miss Marple.

[ Horn honks ] [ Indistinct shouting ] [ Laughs ] Miss Marple reminds me of my Nanna Carr.

If there was something going on, whether on the streets or between the sheets, she was the first to know.

I discovered Miss Marple on a caravan holiday right here in Agatha's hometown of Torquay in Devon, and I just fell in love with this nosy old biddy and the wartime-era England where she lived... -Isn't she marvelous?

-...solving crimes in a village where the odds of being murdered are frankly terrifying.

-[ Screams ] -I mean, there's what, 12 Miss Marple novels and 20 short stories.

The body count's worse than an episode of "Game of Thrones."

-A woman has been strangled.

-I mean, I'm a gay man, and there's something about gay men and old women -- that classic Venn diagram overlap of gossip, scandal, and sass.

But I want to find out more about Miss Marple and what inspired Agatha to create her.

I'm starting here -- Torquay's Cockington Court.

Agatha grew up just down the road and was a regular visitor.

Alright for some.

I'm here to meet my good friend Susie Blake, the latest actress to take on the role of Miss Marple, in a stage version of "The Mirror Crack'd," a classic Christie thriller.

-Alan!

-Susie.

Hello, love.

You've got some good lungs on you.

I could hear you in Cornwall!

-[ Laughs ] -So here she is, the new Miss Marple.

Exciting.

-Yeah, very exciting.

-And it's "The Mirror Crack'd."

-Yes.

-Now, what I remember that, daiquiri at the fete, poisoned daiquiri.

-That's right.

That's right.

And a beautiful actress.

And a lot of people have come from America, but poor thing, Miss Marple has hurt her ankle 'cause she's had a fall, so she starts off in a wheelchair.

-Yeah.

-So that means she's incapacitated and can't go about her normal busybody investigations.

-Yeah, yeah.

Are you a bit like Miss Marple?

Can you be quite nosy?

Do you gossip much?

I can't imagine that.

-I'm quite a good listener.

-Yeah.

-No, I love a gossip.

I love a gossip.

-To gossip.

I can listen to gossip and spread it.

-Oh, you devil!

-'Cause I was thinking, like, Miss Marple is a bit like when you get the Shakespearean actors going with King Lear.

You know, when a man gets to a certain age, you can play King Lear, and a bit Miss Marple's like that, isn't it?

It's a great role... -Yes.

-...for an older lady, isn't it?

-It is.

It is.

-Yes.

-And it's something, well, certainly I've always wanted to play.

I've got to learn to knit.

-Yeah.

Oh.

-I can do plain and purl.

-What the hell's that?

-It's like that.

-Sounds like a couple of country and western singers.

[ Both laugh ] So you've got to remember lines... -Yes.

-...be Miss Marple, and knit.

You're a triple threat.

Wow.

-I am a triple threat.

[ Both laugh ] Yes, I am.

-Wow.

-But lines is the thing, yes.

-Yeah.

Yeah.

And you're gonna tour with this all over the U.K.?

-Yes, yes, we are.

-Everyone loves an Agatha Christie.

They do.

-I think so.

-It's the mystery, isn't it?

Everyone loves -- Everyone loves a good murder and they love a good mystery.

-Trying to work it out.

Where are the clues?

Yes, absolutely.

-I'd love to be in an Agatha Christie.

I'm so jealous of you.

-Well, do you want to have a go?

I've got the script.

-Really?

-Yeah.

I've got -- I've got a scene here that I'm trying to learn.

-It's a proper role.

It's not a corpse.

I will have -- -It's a proper role.

It's Inspector Craddock.

-Oh!

Yes!

-Do you want to have a go?

Yeah, come on, then.

-Do you know, I'd love to play a policeman.

Oh, Craddock.

-Now, they've known each other all his life.

So he's an investigator.

But he's very comfortable with Marple.

-Yes.

Craddock -- Do you want -- Is it like a west country accent, would you say?

-No, I wouldn't say that.

How was she killed?

-You know that I'm not at liberty to discuss the case.

I feel this is more -- I feel this is more Craddock.

-Do you really?

-Yeah, yeah.

More Captain Birdseye.

-Strangely, I don't -- I don't think it works quite like that.

-Okay, alright, then.

Okay.

Let me immerse myself in the role.

-Immerse, yes, do.

-But line learning's going to have to wait.

As any Agatha fan worth their salt knows, Jane Marple lives in the picture-perfect hamlet of St. Mary Mead.

I know village life, and I also know village people.

There was the Native American, the construction worker, and that cop.

Oh, wrong village.

Okay, listen.

I do know village life, and there's a lot going on under those thatched roofs.

And I'm not just talking tea and crumpets.

I'm talking intrigue.

I'm talking scandal.

And I'm talking murder.

[ Gasps ] I've heard Cockington Village is a dead ringer for St. Mary Mead, and what better way to investigate village life than on the village bike?

[ Ducks quacking ] This is what I call a quintessential English village.

Thatched roofs, gorgeous gardens, colorful cottages.

You half expect Miss Marple to pop her head out over a hedge.

Oh, I love it.

The very last Miss Marple book, "Sleeping Murder," was published after Agatha's death way back in 1976.

But now 12 authors are writing a new book of Marple mysteries for the next generation to enjoy.

And I've come to meet one of them.

Dreda.

-Hey, Alan.

How you doing?

-Oh, bit saddle sore, but I'm so pleased to see you.

-I'm so pleased you could join me in somewhere that looks like St. Mary Mead, because you can just imagine Miss Marple here.

-I know Agatha Christie actually lived over there.

-Yeah.

-But she must have come through here, and it must've gone into her mind.

-You know, we all remember so much from our childhood.

She can't have helped to have been influenced by her surroundings.

-Yes.

Yes, it's beautiful.

You've got the thatched roof.

You've got the cute, quaint cottages.

But then there's murder underneath that thatched roof.

There's poisonings.

-When people talk about Miss Marple novels, they call them cozies.

What is cozy about greed, blackmail, murder?

It's very, very dark when you pull the layers back.

-Miss Marple as a character, she has this mind, doesn't she, that's quicker than the police?

-Oh, she's smart, she's intelligent.

She's the cleverest person in the room, but people are always dismissing her.

-You know, I don't know why I keep thinking of that old busybody from St. Mary Mead.

She'd fit in with this lot.

She's as barmy as they are.

At least she knows what makes these people tick.

-Good morning, Chief Inspector.

-She's called fluffy and dithery in appearance but inwardly sharp and as shrewd as they come.

-Yeah.

-Miss Marple has got this brain that's always, always suspicious.

And you need that suspicious brain if you're going to be a cracking amateur sleuth like Miss Marple.

-Yeah.

Do you reckon there's a bit of scandal an intrigue going around some of the villages 'round here?

-Oh, Alan, I think we should find out.

-I thought you'd never ask.

Come on.

I like a good old eavesdrop, don't you?

-Same here.

[ Both laugh ] -Oh, look.

There's -- What's going on over here?

Get your binoculars.

-Okay, yeah, yeah, yeah.

In position.

-Top right window, you lookin'?

-Oh!

Whoa, whoa.

-You know, Miss Marple, she loved birdwatching.

I love birdwatching.

But you think it was a bit of a smokescreen?

-I think she had certain human birds she was watching.

You know, to me, Miss Marple is all about the psychology.

She's the Cracker of the Christie world.

-Yeah.

-And you can't just gawk at people.

You've got to think of strategies like your binoculars to do it.

-I mean, Agatha Christie, she was known for eavesdropping on people and getting, like, little snippets of dialogue.

I mean, you're a crime writer.

Do you eavesdrop?

-All the time.

I got my notebook with me constantly.

You gotta people-watch if you're a writer.

-I tell you what, this snooping is making me thirsty.

Do you fancy a cuppa?

Come on, then.

-Let's go.

-And you've written a new Miss Marple story.

Pressure.

-I'll tell you, pressure.

But you know what?

It's called "Marple."

And that's when you know you've arrived, when people are just using one name.

And it's written by 12 international bestselling female writers.

-I mean, what does that say about the character of Miss Marple, that even though Agatha Christie's gone, people are still interested in this woman and want her to live on and have new cases?

-It's great, and I think there aren't enough older female amateur sleuths or detectives in crime fiction.

And crime fiction is bought by a lot of women.

And I think people like books that are about somebody tackling justice and putting the world back to rights again.

-Yeah, definitely.

-Tell you what, Alan.

I've got a sneak peek for you.

-[ Gasps ] Oh!

-There you go.

You're the first person to actually get a copy.

-Do you know I've read all of the Miss Marple mysteries, and to have 12 new ones.

I want to go to bed and read it now.

Oh.

Oh, my God.

[ Laughs ] Oh.

This book is such a page-turner.

I'm just loving it.

Ooh, whatever next?

Agatha Christie really used Miss Marple to expose the dark underbelly of what happens in an English country village.

And apart from Miss Marple, there was only one other person in the village who knows everybody's secrets.

If anyone can give me the lowdown on the dark side of village life, it's fellow Northamptonian Reverend Richard Coles.

[ Doorbell rings ] -Alan.

-Hello.

-Welcome to my simple vicarage.

-You've done alright for yourself.

This view is stunning.

-Isn't it?

-Oh.

-Makes a change from Northampton, doesn't it?

-Ohh.

It's making me want to be in Northampton.

The River Ouse and Poundland.

[ Laughs ] -Cup of tea?

-Oh, please, yes -Let's do it.

-And I always forget to use this when I go to posh places.

-The strainer.

-Yeah.

You know who also used to like tea?

-Who's that?

-Miss Marple!

-'Course she did.

Scandal soup!

Can I have your cup?

-Oh, please.

Was you a fan of Miss Marple?

-Was I?

I still am.

In fact, I aspire to be Miss Marple.

-Do you?

-As a vicar, Alan, I spend a lot of my time living in a village in the country, trying to figure out the mysteries of what's going on behind people's curtains.

-The first novel she was in was "Murder at the Vicarage."

I mean, that has got a shooting.

It's got theft.

It's got adultery.

It's got everything.

Is it really like that in a vicarage?

-That would be Wednesday.

[ Both laugh ] You kind of hot up a bit at the weekend.

But it's true.

When I first went to my last parish, which is, you know, country parish in Northamptonshire, I had a murder in the first week.

-Really?

-Yeah.

-Wow.

-And even in a small place like St. Mary Mead, passions run deep.

-Yeah.

-People have good fortune and ill fortune, and they clash, like anywhere.

-One of my favorite Miss Marple books is "A Murder Is Announced."

And it really captures village life, doesn't it?

You know, announcing in the paper.

-There's going to be a murder.

-What time?

-7:00 this evening.

-Short notice.

-And the villagers turning up.

"Ooh, let's go!"

-But nobody admits, apart from one, that they've come for the murder.

They all come 'round to borrow half a cup of sugar or something, don't they?

Then one literally goes, "When's the murder?

When's the murder?"

And then on cue it happens.

-When you do get a murder in an Agatha Christie, I just like the way everyone just carries on.

You know, there'll be a dead body there, but they still go, "Anyone for whist?"

And, you know, if someone's been murdered, they go, "What did you think of her?"

"She was a very dull girl."

-"She was terribly fast and she got what she deserved."

-Yes, I know!

Miss Marple, she uses tea, really, to get secrets out.

"Oh, have a cup of tea, my dear.

Sit down."

-She's very good at that, isn't she?

About getting people, unintentionally, to reveal the truths about themselves.

To have an old lady who turns out to be the cleverest one of all, that's good, isn't it?

-Yeah, I have the voice of an old lady, so I'm really up for that.

-Would you like another sarnie?

Or you still on that one?

-Yes, please.

The diet starts tomorrow.

What was your first encounter with Miss Marple?

-Well, it was the Margaret Rutherford film of the "4:50 from Paddington."

Brilliant premise.

It starts with Miss Marple sitting on a train chugging out of Paddington, and another train comes alongside, going somewhere else, and she sees a murder through the window.

And Margaret Rutherford, nothing like Miss Marple, actually.

-No, no.

-But she was such a compelling presence on-screen.

-So understated when she saw the murder.

-Now, you saw that, didn't you?

Didn't you?

-"Did you see that?

Did you see the murder?"

It was like if that was a quiet carriage, she would be thrown out.

-And then when Joan Hickson came along, it would be hard to think of a better Marple.

-Also a Northampton girl.

-Really?

-Yes!

She's a Northamptonian.

-There you go.

Maybe there's something about Northampton that unlocks all these mysteries.

-"Murder in the Boot and Shoe Museum."

Oh, my God, I can see it now.

-Nobody would notice.

A body could lie there for months.

[ Both laugh ] What appealed to you about her?

-I quite liked the closed world of it.

I remember, we'd sometimes all go on the coach and go to the away games with my dad and the director's wife there with the fur coat, and then you'd have the handsome player, then you have that.

And I'd be like, "Wouldn't it be amazing if the coach went in a tunnel and someone was murdered?"

"Death on the Coach."

And then, of course, I'd be like, as a 13-year-old, "So, where was you?

In the tunnel?"

Of course, complete fantasy.

-That genre is such a popular one now.

We forget that she was such a big pioneer of it.

You couldn't have had Jack Reacher without Miss Marple.

-Yes, yes.

-Not often two characters you consider to be close relatives.

-You know what the last words Joan Hickson said as Miss Marple?

-No.

-"More tea, Vicar?"

-Perfect.

-Chatting with the Rev has made me think of how many people have actually played Miss Marple over the years -- Angela Lansbury, Helen Hayes, Joan Hickson, Geraldine McEwan, Julia McKenzie.

One thing's for sure -- She doesn't look like your average detective.

So, how do you bring Miss Marple off the page and onto the screen?

You enlist a BAFTA-winning costume designer, that's how.

Ah, here she is.

Hello, Phoebe.

-Hello, there.

Hi.

-Hello.

Now, you designed Miss Marple, didn't you?

-Yes.

-Her costume.

Which one?

-I did the one with Geraldine McEwan in it.

They wanted a completely different feel for Geraldine to what had gone before, which would be much more severe, tweedy, battle-ax and all that.

And because Geraldine herself is a very, very feminine woman... -Yeah.

-...they wanted to play on that with her, make her quite delicate, wearing a lot of knitted things, lacy things.

This is partly because one of the producers was mad on knitting at the time.

-Really?

[ Both laugh ] -Which was a bit of a craze then, for some reason.

-Yeah, yeah.

The span of Miss Marple is basically 40 years, isn't it?

So what period did you choose?

-This was all early '50s.

-Where'd you find all the stuff?

-Well, we got a lot of it from wonderful Cosprop.

-Yeah, yeah.

-So things were made here and also this wonderful stock.

When I was given the brief to have everything knitted, the first thing I thought was, "How can you have evening dress knitted?"

-I know!

-It's gonna be weird.

-Yeah.

-Anyway, so in the end, we just did lace, which is sort of not exactly the same thing.

This is something that she wore.

-I'm not going to lie, though, it's a bit musty.

How do you get it freshened up?

Was it a bit of Febreze?

-Geraldine didn't need Febreze.

-I'm sure she didn't!

-This was a funny thing.

This was knitted by the producer who was mad on knitting, but we could never work out which way up it went.

It's like... -Oh, yeah.

Look at the hole there.

Is that moths?

-No, a few dropped stitches.

-Oh.

[ Both laugh ] -So that was really quite funny.

Anyway, Geraldine was like, "Ooh, do we have to wear it?"

I said, "Yes, we do."

-Yes.

-So she wore that in bed on one occasion, I think.

We made this one, but it was done from -- -I remember watching her wear that.

-And that funny button detail, which I've got from, you know, period research.

-Is this your notes here?

-Yeah, those are some sketches.

Did always like sketching and getting into the character.

-Look at that.

God, you go into so much detail.

Little dogs motif on dress.

-Yes.

-I love this.

So is there anything maybe I could try on?

Do you have anything in fat?

-Could you get that on?

-Do you reckon?

-She wore this.

-Really?

Do you reckon I should?

-Don't stretch it.

-Uh!

-[ Laughs ] -Okay.

Oh, look at this.

-Oh, look at that.

-Oh, look.

-Oh, my goodness.

-I love the colors.

It brings out me teeth.

-[ Laughs ] Could be made for you.

-What do you think?

-What about the hat?

-Really?

Has Geraldine worn this hat?

-Yes, these hats were all made for her.

Oh, look.

-Oh, ain't I pretty?

-Oh, yes.

-As my nan would say, bonny.

-[ Laughing ] -I feel I could solve a crime.

I feel like I look like a crime.

-A crime scene!

[ Both laugh ] -Look like a crime scene.

Oh, okay, well, I'm going to just have a little browse.

I can have a little look, can't I?

-Please do.

Yeah, yeah.

Nice to see you.

-Yeah, nice to see you, love.

Buh-bye.

-Bye.

Bye.

-Can a dress be haunted?

So, is anything male here, Phoebe?

Phoebe?

Phoebe!

This is not the kind of place I want to be by myself.

It's quite scary.

[ Laughs ] I can't believe I've just worn Miss Marple's clothes.

Talk about up close and personal.

But I still want to know what inspired Agatha Christie to create this amazing character.

And for that, I'm going to have to head back to Devon.

You can't beat an English summer, can you?

-Lovely, lovely, isn't it?

-Well, the weather might've caught up with me, but I'm hoping Agatha biographer Laura Thompson has the answers I'm after.

Do you know who inspired Miss Marple?

-I think the particular inspiration for Miss Marple were her grandmothers -- one in particular, Margaret.

She was the sort of woman who could, you know, spot an illicit affair at 100 paces.

Both the grandmothers, they were very religious.

They sort of -- and this is Miss Marple -- sort of hoped for the best in people but expected the worst.

-Yes, yes, yes.

-You know?

So she grew up with...

I suppose what you might say the sound of female wisdom.

-Oh, right, I see.

-You know?

-The one thing I don't understand is, Agatha Christie, she's already got this world-famous detective, Hercule Poirot.

Why come up with another one?

Why feel the need?

-Well, she first appeared in short stories in 1927, the year after the worst year of her life.

She loses her mother.

She loses her husband.

She disappears.

-Disappears, yeah.

-Her life falls apart.

-It's hard to imagine what Agatha's mental state must've been.

Just as she's getting over the death of her beloved mother, her husband of 12 years announces he's leaving her.

-And then what do you have?

You have this character that comes into her literary life with this consoling... the voice of her childhood, almost.

This calm woman who's not -- She has no life experience.

She hasn't been battered by life the way Agatha has.

But she has wisdom.

-And she's the predecessor to all these unlikely, unassuming female detectives that come in the future, like Jessica Fletcher, definitely, Rosemary and Thyme, Vera.

-She has the absolute essence of that inner wisdom that hasn't come from experience.

It's come from observation.

-The deaths in Miss Marple novels are so grim.

Like, you've got "A Pocket Full of Rye," you've got the maid strangled.

You got in "A Body in the Library," especially the second murder, you know, a 16-year-old burned to death in a car.

These are crimes that a elderly lady shouldn't be dealing with.

But she's unshockable, isn't she?

-She is unshockable.

-It's a case of underestimate Miss Marple at your peril.

-Absolutely.

-Agatha Christie's Miss Marple is up there with my favorite characters of all time, and I'm on an adventure to get to know her better.

But even the most brilliant sleuth can't crack cases on an empty stomach.

And Agatha regularly uses food and drink as a plot device in her novels.

Both Agatha and I share a passion for food.

And I'm off now to one of my favorite London haunts, and as it happens, it was one of Agatha's favorite places to eat, too.

Kettner's Studio in the heart of Soho oozes 1920s glamour.

I'm here to meet a fellow Agatha fan for what was supposed to be a quick bite.

But what's all this?!

-This an Agatha Christie spread of food.

You see, food was a vehicle for defining her characters.

When you look at Miss Marple, you really get an idea of who she is from the food she enjoys.

-Very traditional, very nostalgic.

-Poached eggs on toast, that sort of steady, sensible food, the type of food you'd expect your grandmother to enjoy.

And it's really of the period, as well.

Things like seedcake, violet creams.

-Oh, I don't like violet cr-- And I don't even like oysters.

They're like phlegm in an ashtray.

-Well, she didn't like them.

You're in good company!

-When I read her books, you know, we hear about comfort eating.

For me, it's comfort reading.

-In there is this real backbone of Britishness and things being as they should be.

-Yes.

-Her novels are absolutely a feast of food.

Some she loved, some she absolutely detested.

It's no surprise that all the things she hated, such as oysters, milk, these are things that ended up being poisoned.

She really detested warm milky drinks.

-How can you not like a warm milk?

How did she get to sleep at night?!

I have to have a warm milk.

Now, you throw Agatha Christie-themed catered parties.

-I do.

-So is it this kind of food?

-It is.

I have to say, some are poisoned, some are not.

How much of a gambler are you?

-I love how you said that so casually.

"Some of them are poisoned."

Lovely.

Have you ever given anyone food poisoning and they've gone, "It's poison, it's cyanide," and you've gone, "Oh, no, that's just my cooking"?

-No, thankfully.

Not yet.

-Glad to hear it.

-Yeah.

-Well, let's have some fun then.

Let me see.

So this cocktail was in "The Mirror Crack'd from Side to Side."

-Yeah.

-There's no poison in this, is there?

-I'm saying nothing.

But if you open up the card, it will tell you.

-You are twisted.

-[ Laughs ] -Poisoned!

-I didn't want to say anything.

-It might be poisoned but it's quite moreish.

I'm gonna have another sip.

-Well, that's the idea, isn't it?

-Can I have a scone?

-'Course you can.

-Ooh, that's good, that.

[ Muffled ] I love that.

So great.

Not poisoned.

Oh, lovely.

That's great.

I feel drunk and fat.

[ Cork pops ] The food and the drink just kept on coming.

-Cheers.

-Cheers, love.

It was quite sinister, 'cause she was on about poisoning a lot of the time, and as I was having a bit, I was like... "You haven't, have you?"

Well, I lived to tell the tale.

But one thing's clear -- Poison was definitely one of Agatha's favorite murder weapons.

And some of the most lethal ingredients can be found actually growing in your garden, as anyone who's tasted my Rhubarb and Dock Leaf Surprise can vouch for!

Charming.

I'm hoping Ali Marshall, head gardener at Torquay's Torre Abbey, can tell me more.

Ali!

Hello.

Now, I hear you're the most dangerous woman in Torquay.

-I think that's a bit unfair.

-[ Laughs ] -But I am a bit of an expert on poisonous plants.

Is that what you mean?

-Yeah, that's what I mean.

I mean, 'cause Agatha Christie loved her poisons, and Miss Marple knew her way around poisons.

-She did.

It's quite important to know, actually, in a garden.

They are very dangerous places.

So I've created a sort of homage to Agatha Christie here, really full of poisonous plants.

Not everything is poisonous, though.

-No.

-Miss Marple, for example, she had things like tansy wine and cowslip wine.

So we have got sort of cowslips and tansy around the place.

I wanted it to be a garden that represented Agatha's love of gardening and Miss Marple's love of gardening.

-Well, can I get involved?

Is there anything I can do?

-I think you can come and help me with some of the planting.

Are you happy to do that?

-I'd love that.

Yeah.

-We will have to put some gloves on you first.

-And a hazmat suit by the sounds of it!

-This first one, we're going to plant ricin.

-Ricin!

-And this really is quite a dangerous one.

-Is it?

-Yes.

-So ricin was in an Agatha Christie book?

-It is.

It was only in one book.

It's got a fantastic name, though.

It's called "The House of Lurking Death."

-Oh, lovely.

-And it's in -- wait for it -- the fig paste sandwiches, which sounds worse than the ricin to me, quite honestly.

-Yeah, fig paste.

Blech!

Okay, so say I touched that and then put with it.

How much -- Would I die?

-No, you'd be fine.

It's the seeds of the ricin plant.

So if I could get eight ricin seeds down you... -Yeah.

I'd be dead.

-...you'd be dead.

-Is that a big enough hole, love?

-A little bit bigger and a little bit wider, maybe, will make your life a bit easier.

-Right.

I don't know if this is apocryphal, but wasn't there like a real-life poisoning and someone sort of read the Agatha Christie book and went, "Oh, my God, that's the poison that they used in the crime"?

-Oh, that's the thallium poisoning.

-"The Pale Horse," yes.

-"The Pale Horse."

A nurse who was an Agatha Christie fan spotted the same sort of symptoms, and I think she was the one that sort of diagnosed.

Nobody else knew what was going on.

So that's quite extraordinary, actually, 'cause she was so accurate in some of her novels about the symptoms of poisoning.

-Yeah.

-Because Agatha was a nurse, wasn't she, in the war?

-She was, yeah.

-Agatha volunteered during both World War I and II, first as a nurse at Torquay's town hall hospital, then training as a pharmacy assistant.

It was this that gave her the idea of using strychnine poison as a murder weapon in her very first detective novel, "The Mysterious Affair at Styles."

-So in half her novels, you know, there were poisonings, and a lot of them are those sort of plants and medicines that she learned.

And it's all about... -Balance, isn't it, as well.

-It's the dose.

-Yeah.

-When Miss Marple talks about flowers, she knows what she's doing, which I think is maybe Agatha.

-Have you got anything to cure knobbly knees?

-Oh, what you need is aconite.

But it's very dangerous 'cause it numbs everything.

-No, I'll just have some paracetamol, thanks, love.

Oh.

-There you go.

-We deserve a break after that.

Agatha Christie, when you read the books, she didn't really think much of gardeners.

Do you find that a bit offensive?

-Yeah.

I mean, 'cause I was really excited when I started reading the books because actually most of these poisons that she uses are, in fact, from the gardener's tool shed.

And yet it's never the gardener that did it.

She has us down as, it's quite ironic, quite interested in taking elevenses and not working very hard.

-What a thing to say.

-I don't know what she means.

-[ Laughs ] Well, you make a lovely cup of tea.

-Are you sure you want to drink it?

-You haven't.

-No.

-You haven't.

-I wouldn't dream of it.

Too many witnesses.

[ Both laugh ] -Not going to lie, the idea of having a garden filled with poisonous plants initially felt a bit wrong and a bit macabre.

But it's really interesting to know about the different poisons, the symptoms, how long it took for them to stay in your body.

And that's the kind of detail that Agatha Christie knew long before anyone else did.

And she picked that information and she pulled it into her novels.

And that's what makes her the greatest crime writer ever.

I want to know more about the world Agatha grew up in and how it became the setting for many a Miss Marple mystery.

In a Miss Marple story, no one is safe from murder.

Like me in a shell suit, it's classless.

When I was reading these books in my mum and dad's semi-detached house in Northampton, I became obsessed with mansions and living that country-style estate, you know, where they'd throw parties in your billiard room and then they'd all go into the drawing room.

I didn't even know what a drawing room was.

All I know is, I wanted an invite.

When Miss Marple isn't snooping on her neighbors in the village, she can often be found cracking cases at fine country houses.

And there's one character in this setting that kept cropping up time and time again -- the unsuspecting maid.

There was Kitty -- always missed the cobwebs.

And Emily, in "Murder at the Vicarage," couldn't even make a bed properly.

I can!

Ethel, in "A Christmas Tragedy," steals two diamond brooches and the lace off Lady Ashton's knickers.

And let's not forget poor old Gladys in "A Pocket Full of Rye," strangled in the yard and left with a peg on her nose.

Ow, that hurts.

Do you know what?

I'm quitting.

This maid is leaving.

Get someone else!

I've come to Powderham Castle to find out just what it takes to become a Miss Marple maid.

Oh, look at this!

This is amazing.

Hello, Alan.

I'm Britta, I'm the house manager.

-That fire's nice.

So does anyone actually live here?

-Yes, they do.

This is the Courtenay family home, and they've been here for the last 600 years.

And it is very much a family home.

-Do they actually eat on that table?

-They do.

They have fancy meals and pizzas and, like, everything.

-Pizzas on here?

Wow, that's insane.

I'm on this adventure with Agatha Christie, and I'm a big Miss Marple fan.

And more often than not, she'd always end up in big houses like this.

It's always the staff that sort of are the heartbeat of the house.

They always know what's going on.

And then, of course, you're very discreet and you keep it zipped.

-Yes, absolutely.

-You see, if you were in an Agatha Christie novel, you would come up and tell me everything, and I'd go, "Aha."

[ Laughs ] How long does it take to train a maid up?

-I think that'd be dependent on their willingness.

-And what kind of qualities would you have?

-Energetic and enthusiastic.

-That's me!

Do you reckon I could be a maid?

-I think we can sort something out.

-Lesson one -- the perfect table setting.

Oh, look at this.

Well, this is easy, innit?

Fork.

Knife.

And then you know those bits at the bottom of the Pot Noodle that are that congealed and you can't get out?

I use a spoon.

Wash it down with a nice glass of Ribena.

What's your problem?

-Uh, it's not quite up to scratch.

-Looks like I've got a lot to learn.

-A little to your left.

Too low!

Up a bit.

-I can see now why they have pizzas!

-You also have your knives facing in, because we're not attacking people.

-You haven't seen my family eat.

-[ Laughs ] -I think Miss Marple'd be proud of that.

Next stop, the bedroom.

Oh, get your mind out the gutter.

Where's the fitted sheets?

-We don't use fitted sheets.

We do hospital corners.

I'll give you 10 minutes.

-10 minutes?

-Yes.

-Alright, then.

Okay.

Ohh, who doesn't have fitted sheets in this day and age?

That's alright, innit?

Is it?

This is quite satisfying, this.

I like this.

It's funny, this obsession with maids and everything.

Agatha Christie was sort of there before "Downton Abbey" even came about.

This upstairs/downstairs kind of existence, you know, that often the butlers, the housekeeper, the maid were the eyes and ears of the house and they knew what was going on.

I think Agatha Christie, yet again, was one step ahead of everyone else.

[ Laughing ] -How are you getting on, Alan?

-I'm having a mare.

Pillows look great, though, don't they?

-You have done a fantastic job on those.

-Thank you, Britta.

That's very kind.

As a maid, you've got to be a bit like Miss Marple yourself, haven't you?

Can you come into a bedroom and go, "Ah, they have two slices of toast.

They went walking."

-Yeah, you can tell sometimes what people have been up to.

-So some bedrooms are a bit like a crime scene, I bet.

-Oh, yes.

[ Both laugh ] -Well, look at that.

You must be so pleased.

Don't answer that.

I remember my dad coming into my bedroom and sitting down on my bed and saying, "Alan, is it brunettes or blondes?"

And I said, "Dad, for me, it's grays."

And it always has been.

My love for Miss Marple has always been there.

Too much information?

Let's drive on.

It isn't just the Miss Marple books I love.

I'm obsessed with the Marples from TV and film dramas, too.

I've heard Agatha Christie was a big cinema fan herself, and this is where she used to come.

How are you doing?

-Hi.

Welcome to the Paignton Picture House.

-Well, I was expecting to see a screening, but I think I'm about four years too soon.

The cinema still has all the original features from Agatha Christie's day, but a �4 million restoration project hopes to restore its somewhat faded grandeur.

When did she come here?

-Probably postwar, so late '40s, '50s, '60s.

Agatha Christie was living just a train stop away at Greenway.

It was essentially her local cinema.

-Did she always sit in the same seat?

-Just through here.

Let me show you.

This is where the VIPs all sat.

-Oh, I could feel at home here.

So this would be exactly how it was when Agatha Christie came all those years ago.

It's untouched.

It's untouched.

It's so amazing.

-That's where she'd sit.

Row 2, Seat 2.

-Oh!

-And then she had the luxury of being chauffeur-driven here.

So her chauffeur would always sit on the outside on the aisle seat there.

-It's so atmospheric here.

It feels like they should film an Agatha Christie here.

Do you know what I mean?

-Yeah, well, they've filmed one or two in their time.

So the most memorable was with Donald Sutherland.

-They filmed it here?

-Yes, filmed.

Front of the stained glass windows into the balcony here, so this is a real landmark on the Agatha Christie trail.

-Can I sit on it?

-Be my guest.

-I think it's quite telling that Agatha wanted to sit here rather than in the VIP boxes.

-No, absolutely, I think it shows you that she still feels herself as one of the community.

And it's also one of the best seats in the house.

-To think even today, they're doing big Hollywood remakes of Kenneth Branagh's "Death on the Nile" and "Murder on the Orient Express."

It's weird, isn't it, how it all goes around?

-I think people will be coming here to sit where Agatha Christie sat in 40, 50 years' time, I'm sure.

-Well, I would say, "What are we going to watch?"

But I think we're going to have to wait a long time.

-Well, we've got a treat lined up just for you this evening.

-Oh.

-The perfect film to match the seat you're sitting in.

-Good afternoon, Mr. Gaskell.

-Miss Marple.

-Jamie Theakston.

Sitting in Agatha Christie's seat watching Miss Marple.

This is heaven.

But just when I think I can kick back and relax a bit...

I've had a call from my friend and now acting coach Susie Blake asking me to meet her at the Palace Theatre just up the road from here.

Now I know they're big Agatha fans there, but what's that got to do with me?

Susie?

-Alan?

-Su-- -Have you been studying?

-I love it.

It's great, really good.

-Yeah, it's good, isn't it?

And I've got a little treat for you.

I've got an audience of Marple fans all just dying to see you.

as Inspector Craddock.

-Really?

-Yes, really, and I think there's a costume in there for you.

I've been given one.

-Oh, how great.

Thank you.

-See you in a bit.

-See you in a bit!

Can you be fat and be a policeman?

Traces of a drug were discovered in Heather Leigh's strawberry daiquiri.

-So time to go.

-Yep, come on, then.

Break a leg.

That's what you say?

Oh, you've already broke -- Try and break the other one.

[ Both laugh ] I'm nervous.

-No, don't be nervous.

They're all on our side.

-But these aren't just any Miss Marple fans.

I've got a theater full of Miss Marples.

They are huge Agatha Christie fans.

I mean, this is a real case of be careful what you wish for.

I don't want to let them down.

I don't want to let Susie down.

What could go wrong?

-It's very quiet.

-I know.

I can hear them.

-Yes, I can hear them, too.

So I'll sit here, okay?

-There might be an agent out there or something.

I could get a part in "Heartbeat" or something.

I look the part, don't I?

[ Applause ] -So, Dermot, how was she killed?

-You know I'm not at liberty to discuss the case.

-So why are you here?

-I was in the village, so I thought I'd pop in.

– At 8: 00 in the morning?

-Old people are early risers.

-That's because we have so much to pack into our days.

-You feeling sorry for yourself?

-You feeling patronizing?

Dermot, I held you when you were three days old.

-They found traces of drug in Heather Leigh's strawberry daiquiri.

-Strawberry daiquiri?

-It's a cocktail.

-I meant I wouldn't have had Heather Leigh down as a daiquiri type.

What kind of drug?

-12 doses of dia-fer-barbiturate.

The trade name is -- -Calmo.

I presume you believe Marina Gregg to have been the intended victim, in which case, she's in terrible danger.

-[ Gasps ] [ Applause ] -[ Sputters ] -They're a tough crowd.

-They're a very tough crowd.

-Tough crowd.

I mean, come on.

I gave my heart and soul in that performance.

-Amazing.

-Evening, all!

[ Applause ] What an amazing way to end my Miss Marple adventures.

Well, next stop Hollywood, surely!

I've always loved Miss Marple, and over the last few days, I've found out so much more about her.

And I'm beginning to understand why Agatha Christie had such a soft spot for her.

I like to think she's still there in St. Mary Mead twitching those curtains, spreading that gossip, and solving crimes, like she's always done and always will do.