Sunday 21st September 2025, 12:00am

Agatha Christie at Isokon: the Modernist War Years

Leyla Daybelge and Magnus Englund

Between 1941 and 1947 Agatha Christie lived in the Lawn Road Flats in Hampstead, Britain’s first Modernist apartment block. Advertised during the Blitz, as the “safest building in London”, it was here, living in a tiny, 25-square-metre Minimum Apartment, that Christie entered one of the most prolific periods of her career. She penned the stage play, which would eventually become The Mousetrap, and Curtain: Poirot’s Last Case, the story in which she killed off her eponymous hero.

Christie’s fellow residents in the building, which later became known as the Isokon Flats, included left-wing artists, writers, archaeologists and even a network of Soviet spies.

Leyla Daybelge and Magnus Englund are Trustees of The Isokon Gallery and co-authors of Isokon and the Bauhaus in Britain, Batsford 2019, and Walter Gropius, an Illustrated Biography, Phaidon, 2023. Leyla Daybelge is an author and broadcaster, who worked for ITN, BBC Radio Four and Sky News. Magnus Englund is an author of design and architecture books and co-founder of the interior design retailer Skandium.

Gallery

Venue: Spanish Barn, Torre Abbey

Accessibility

There is a drop-off point and limited parking within the grounds for disabled visitors. Entry to the Spanish Barn is relatively level, but there are a few cobble stones to cross, before entering the completely flat interior. We have space for wheelchairs, although if you let us know in advance, we can ensure that there is ample dedicated space for the number of wheelchair users. We have again raised the height of the main stage this year, so that guest speakers can easily be seen and have a hearing loop in the front half of the Barn nearest the stage. We also have two TV screens midway down the barn screening what is happening on the stage. There is a disabled toilet available to the rear of the Spanish Barn.

If you have any particular access requirements or enquiries, do please get in touch and we will do whatever we feasibly can to accommodate you. Please email admin@iacf-uk.org

Getting there

Getting to the venue

The Spanish Barn is in the grounds of Torre Abbey. This is on Torquay seafront and walkable from most hotels in the area. It is also right next to Torquay Train Station.

Parking

There is no parking in the grounds of Torre Abbey except for disabled parking. The nearest car park is Torre Valley - Torbay Council. This is a five-minute walk from the Spanish Barn.

Toilets

Toilets are available to the rear of the Spanish Barn for the duration of the Literary Festival.

Inside the Spanish Barn

Whilst we have no evening events in the Spanish Barn this year, it can get cold so please dress with this in mind.

Food and Drink

The cafe at Torre Abbey is open Tuesday to Sunday from 10am till 4pm and is dog friendly.

A short 10-minute walk away from the Spanish Barn are a variety of cafes, bars and takeaways.

Dogs

Dogs, except for assistance dogs, are not allowed in the Spanish Barn.

If you have any further questions, please email admin@iacf-uk.org

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