Agatha Christie letters reveal writer’s ‘love-hate’ of Poirot

The British Library said it aimed to reveal the “person behind the cultural phenomenon that is Agatha Christie”, taking visitors on a journey through her upbringing in Torquay, her interests, travels and how her work continues to be adapted for stage and screen.

Lead curator Lucy Rowland said: “This is the biggest exhibition held in the UK in almost 25 years to celebrate Christie’s writing.”

The library has borrowed around 200 items, including personal objects that have never been displayed before, to examine Christie’s writing process and look at her impact on the crime fiction genre.

The National Trust, which looks after Christie’s former holiday home Greenway in South Devon, has also loaned items to the British Library for the display.

Christie’s great-grandson James Prichard, chief executive of Agatha Christie Limited, worked with the library on the exhibition.

It feels fitting to do this to help mark the 50th anniversary of her death,” he said.