Festival 2024

The Agatha Christie Festival 2024 ran from Saturday 7th to Sunday 15th September, with a five-day Fringe Festival followed by a four-day Literary Festival. It was perhaps our most international yet, with guests joining us from at least 27 counties for some or all the 9-day programme. 52 events took place across the Festival, including walks, talks, theatre, cinema, boat trips, steam train adventures and murder mysteries right across the Bay.

Around 300 people took part in the Agatha Christie Sea Swim, which supports our local hospice and celebrates the author's love of sea swimming. The Literary Festival was held in the Spanish Barn at Torre Abbey, with an impressive line-up of speakers who chatted about various aspects of Agatha’s life and works, as well as the genre of crime fiction in general.

Opening proceedings was very special headline guest, Lynda La Plante who will be launching her memoir, Getting Away with Murder: My Unexpected Life on Page, Stage and Screen. The packed programme continued with authorities and authors discussing every aspect of Agatha’s life, from her travels to her book covers, as well as the use of jewellery or the role of doctors in her novels.

Dr Mark Aldridge launched his brand-new book, Agatha Christie's Marple: Expert on Wickedness, while the programme closed with very special guests, Ragnar Jónasson (Dark Iceland) and Benjamin Stevenson (Everyone In My Family Has Killed Someone) chatting to Jake Kerridge about their love of Agatha Christie and her influences on their work.
The Agatha Christie Festival is a charity and raises money to work with local young people to improve literacy rates and foster a love of reading.