In Alan Carr's Adventures With Agatha Christie, comedian Alan Carr reveals a surprising secret — he's obsessed with Agatha Christie and has read all of her books.
Although he's already a superfan whose love of Agatha's books began when he was 12, Alan's curious to find out more about the woman behind the bestsellers, and in this three-part documentary, he'll be visiting some of the stunning landscapes that inspired her books, meeting her descendants, and even popping backstage at her record-breaking West End play, The Mousetrap.
Here's everything you need to know about the new series - including an interview with Alan himself...
Alan Carr's Adventures With Agatha Christie release date
Alan Carr's Adventures With Agatha Christie launches on Sunday, August 14 at 9pm on More4.
Alan Carr's Adventures With Agatha Christie — what locations does he visit?
Over the course of the series, Alan will be visiting all sorts of places that were meaningful to Agatha Christie, many of them in and around Devon. He'll be visiting London's West End to go backstage at The Mousetrap and find out the secrets of the world's longest-running play (but don't worry, he won't be revealing whodunnit), as well as heading to Greenway House, Agatha's Devon holiday home for over 30 years which features in her book Dead Man's Folly, and having a look through some of her personal photo albums.
Alan will also be taking a trip to Burgh Island, a tidal island in South Devon, where Agatha wrote two of her most famous novels: And Then There Were None and Evil Under The Sun. He even gets a chance to see the actual rooms that Agatha stayed in — but will he too be visited by the muse when he sits down at the typewriter?
Alan Carr's Adventures With Agatha Christie — who are the guests?
During his travels, Alan will be meeting some high-profile Agatha Christie fans to discuss why they love her work. He visits Reverend Richard Coles for a spot of tea to discuss the art of crime fiction — something that Richard has recently turned his hand to — while Susie Blake will be telling Alan about her experience of playing Miss Marple on stage, and Judge Rinder joins Alan to watch a performance of The Witness For The Prosecution.
Alan also meets James Prichard, Agatha's great-grandson, who shares a few family secrets with him...
Alan Carr's Adventures With Agatha Christie — Alan Carr interview
When did you first discover Agatha Christie's books?
"It was a rainy caravan holiday in Devon, and we couldn't go on the beach, we couldn't do anything, so I went to the campsite shop which had a revolving thing with all the books on, and I bought The Murder At The Vicarage — and as soon as I read it, I was hooked! I ended up reading all of them, and on a Saturday morning when we'd go into town, I was always pleading with my Dad, 'please can I have another Agatha Christie?'. I'll always be thankful to Agatha Christie because she started off my love of reading."
You visit some stunning locations in the show — was that a lot of fun?
"Well, the Devon tourist board must be over the moon because we had glorious sunshine, and we went to the best places ever! It was a perfect job — I love a cream tea and mincing around a stately home. Burgh Island was Art Deco heaven, to think she wrote two of her books there. It seems like a cliché when you say, 'I'm walking in Agatha Christie's footsteps' — but I genuinely was! It was just amazing, to be there at that table, looking out at the view where she wrote Evil Under The Sun."
What were you most surprised to find out about Agatha?
"That she had so much vim, and get-up-and-go — we're used to that black-and-white photo of her on the back of the books, where she looks older and quite stern, doesn't she? But as a young woman she went surfing and rollerskating, she went to Egypt, Syria and Iraq. I'm totally new to doing documentaries and it was a bit of a learning curve for me, so we get 'Agatha Christie loved wild swimming, so I put on my wetsuit and went wild swimming!' I was like, 'well, I can see it in a photo, why do I need to go wild swimming? Why can't I just watch it from the beach?'"
What's your favourite Agatha Christie book, and why?
"I think it's The ABC Murders, where a serial killer is killing people whose names begin with A in a town beginning with A, then he goes on to B and works his way through the alphabet. It's quite macabre and vindictive — it's quite a modern murder as well, you could imagine it being on Netflix or something. That's one of my bugbears about Agatha Christie, where people go, 'oh, she's so cosy and she's all twee', but actually some of the ways people are murdered are so grim!"
What do you think is the secret of Agatha's enduring appeal?
"I think we all love a mystery, and it's the nostalgia of time gone by — it's just like getting in a warm bath. I always pop an Agatha Christie in my bag when I'm traveling, it's like taking a friend with you. I know who the killer is, because I've read it before, but I just like them!"
Is there a trailer for Alan Carr's Adventures With Agatha Christie?
Not yet, but if one is released we will add it to this guide.
