www.agathachristie.com

2010 marks the 120th anniversary of Agatha Christie and this year, book lovers, film fans, online gamers and the more adventurous with a taste for international luxury travel are invited to join in the celebrations. Whether it’s watching a rare documentary at the BFI or retracing Christie’s steps to Istanbul, the celebratory events reflect the many aspects of the Queen of Crime’s distinguished career as a writer of novels, short stories, plays and radio dramas – and her great love of travel which inspired many of her best known works.

“It’s remarkable that 120 years after she was born, there is still a huge affection for Agatha Christie and the stories she created,” comments Christie’s grandson, Mathew Prichard. “I hope that her many followers from around the world will find new ways to enjoy her work and that this year’s special celebrations will inspire a new generation of fans.”

Highlights of the 120th anniversary celebrations include:

• In Harrogate, Theakstons Old Peculier Crime Writing Festival (22 – 25 July) is organising A Big Read where everyone in the town and surrounding area will be invited to read Murder on the Orient Express. The festival will host a special Agatha Christie event, chaired by the crime writer Dreda Say Mitchell, with Mathew Prichard and panellists. The festival will also host outdoor screenings of classic Christie films. Further information from www.harrogate-festival.org.uk/crime or telephone 01423 562303
• The Agatha Christie Festival in Torquay - the place of Christie’s birth- and the surrounding English Riviera promises a week of murder, mystery and mayhem from 12-19 September. For one week each year – Christie Week - the whole town comes alive with plays, treasure hunts and tea-dances for the new and diehard Christie fan. This year’s festival also includes innovative Murder Mystery evenings, a cocktail masterclass, a trip to Burgh Island - the setting for one of Christie’s best-selling novels, And Then There Were None - and a charity open sea swim along the coastline where Christie bathed. A celebratory fireworks display will also take place on 15th September in honour of what would have been the author’s 120th birthday. Programmes and information from: www.englishriviera.co.uk/agathachristie or telephone: 01803 408358
• For those looking to celebrate Christie’s birth further afield, the Pera Palace Hotel in Istanbul re-opens this summer after a two year restoration project. The hotel, which first opened its doors in 1892 as the first luxury hotel in the Ottoman Empire, provided the last destination stop in the East for passengers on the Orient Express. Room 411 is dedicated to Agatha Christie who was a regular guest on her visits to Turkey. Mathew Prichard will be attending a special party at the hotel on 15 September. Further information from: www.perapalace.com
• Rocco Forte's Brown's Hotel in Mayfair, London, will be offering a special Agatha Christie Afternoon Tea between the 12-19 September in The English Tea Room - it is believed Brown’s Hotel was the inspiration for At Bertram’s Hotel. The tea will include a signed copy by Mathew Prichard of 'Agatha Christie An Autobiography' along with 'Death on the Nile' cake, 'The Clocks' macaroon, 'At Bertram's Hotel' seed cupcake, 'The Red Signal' raspberry cream and 'Evil Under the Sun' lemon tartlet, along with a selection of sandwiches & scones. On Sunday 19th this tea will be offered as part of a special literary tea event, hosted by John Curran, author of 'Agatha Christie's Secret Notebooks.' This literary event will include a signed copy of John Curran's book. Further information from: www.brownshotel.com or telephone: 020 7518 4169.
• Agatha Christie’s favourite character, Harley Quin, returns to BBC Radio 4 with three new radio readings - Agatha Christie's The Mysterious Mr Quin: The Sign in the Sky, The World’s End and The Face of Helen - to be broadcast 14th – 16th September. This is followed by two new radio dramatisations - And Then There Were None at the end of the year and Sparkling Cyanide in Spring 2011.
• The Agatha Christie Theatre Company tours Witness for the Prosecution around the UK with a star cast including Denis Lill (The Royal), Ben Nealon (Soldier, Soldier), and Robert Duncan (Drop the Dead Donkey), with Peter Byrne (Dixon of Dock Green), and 60's teen idol Mark Wynter. Further information from www.kenwright.com. During Witness For The Prosecution’s run at the Theatre Royal Windsor 16-28 August there will be a special programme of events to mark Agatha Christie’s 120th birthday, including talks, readings and a birthday celebration tea. To receive a brochure with full details please write to: The Marketing Department, Theatre Royal, Thames Street, Windsor, SL4 1PS.
• The BFI Southbank in London is to host a weekend – Saturday 20 – Sunday 21 November - of screenings of rare and unusual adaptations of Agatha Christie’s work. It will be accompanied by special on-stage events and an exhibition
• Join Miss Marple online as you play Agatha Christie 4:50 from Paddington, now available at Iplay.com. This is the fourth in the wildly popular Agatha Christie interactive game series for your PC that has generated more the 30 million downloads since first launching in 2007. Players team up with Miss Marple to investigate an English country estate, uncover critical evidence in London and solve puzzles in Paris.

Ninety years after she wrote her first novel, Agatha Christie remains the best-selling author of all time and has, to date, sold over two billion books worldwide. 2010 is also the 80th anniversary of Miss Marple’s first appearance in print and the 90th of Christie’s Belgian sleuth, Hercule Poirot. Over 4 million books, graphic novels, audiobooks, DVDs, games and items of merchandise are sold each year, which means something Christie-related is sold every eight seconds somewhere in the world. In an extraordinary writing career that spanned more than half a century, Agatha Christie wrote eighty novels and short story collections. She also wrote over a dozen plays, including The Mousetrap which is now the longest running play in theatrical history.