Agatha Christie on...Burgh Island

Burgh Island

'They came up over a steep hill and down a zigzag track to Sticklehaven - a mere cluster of cottages with a fishing boat or two drawn up on the beach. Illuminated by the setting sun, they had their first glimpse of Indian Island jutting up out of the sea and to the south.' (And Then There Were None)

This is the description of Burgh Island in And Then There Were None. Although it's called 'Indian Island' in the version of the book I have. Burgh Island a lovely place set on its own tidal island in Bigbury-on-Sea. Standing on the island is a beautiful art-deco hotel. Agatha Christie spent some time here and it gave her the inspiration for two of her novels - And Then There Were None and Evil Under the Sun. In the hotel, there's even a Christie room you can stay in.

And Then There Were None is one of Agatha Christie's most successful novels. Ten strangers are invited to an island and then one by one they are murdered! It's a very good novel and one of my favourites!

This year for the Agatha Christie Festival, the Agatha Christie Theatre Company will be doing a production of And Then There Were None at the Princess Theatre.

I read an article earlier saying the BBC are going to film another version of And Then There Were None - I hope they film it in and around Burgh Island. It's due to be aired in time for Agatha's 125th birthday this year - we'll probably be down in Torquay, so it would be great to see it while we're down there (as long as we're not already out and about!).

So, there lots going on for And Then There Were None this year!

The other Agatha Christie novel that was inspired by Burgh Island is Evil Under the Sun. In this novel, Hercule Poirot goes over to the island on the recommendation of his doctor, for a little relax and recuperation. However, as always, a murder occurs - the murder of Arlena Stewart who is a famous actress (the more cynical person may suspect Poirot, he's always around....).

The 2001 t.v. adaptation with David Suchet was filmed on Burgh Island and includes many of the places we visited last year. In this adaptation, we see Hercule Poirot boarding the sea tractor over to the island! Although, I don't think he enjoyed it as much as we did!! (Season 8, Episode 1).

So, Burgh Island is definitely on the list of places to visit. We'll hopefully be going to the Agatha Christie Luncheon again this year so should be able to take in the sites while we're there.

Something a bit strange, while writing this I've been watching Death in Paradise (Season 1, Episode 5) - and what would you know...Agatha Christie is mentioned! The episode is very much like an Agatha Christie book - the murder takes place on a boat (so there's a closed pool of suspects), the victim is a criminal handcuffed to a police inspector, and everyone on the boat has a potential motive for killing him. There's even an 'interfering, amateur sleuth' trying to help out the police. Remind you of anyone...!? The plot thickens!

It just goes to show how popular and well-known Agatha Christie is.

Here are a few of our photos of Burgh Island from our visit last year...

Sea Tractor, Burgh Island

Burgh Island

Palm Court Bar

Pixy Court

Burgh Island & Bigbury-on-Sea