A Visit to Greenway House - Agatha Christie's home

Heritage Open Days, meant a trip to Greenway House, near Torquay, once home of the famed crime and detective novelist Agatha Christie. The house is part of the National Trust, and usually an astronomical fee prevents us from visiting, but for a week or so at this time of year, their properties are free to visit (although this one required reserving a parking spot online for a couple of quid). 

What was it like? In a nutshell, a large white house with dark rooms, high ceilings and a lot of dated furniture, which somehow seemed out of date when she was living there. Lots of her baggage from the twenties, thirties. Stacks of books penned by her, and others she and her husband at the time - Max Mallowan - might have read. 

Rooms with items of unexpected interest: The Kitchen - a peculiar cockerel umbrella stand. The Sitting room: Two magpies on the mantle-piece. The Toilet - a wooden seat with a hole in it - I kid you not - apparently she loved it and dragged it around Africa. The Bedroom - a double bed with a single bed next to it. She slept in the double - he slept in the single? A story there. The Dining Room - a poisonous gold-plated cobra acting as a doorstop. Near the Stairs: A large skull with an ornate green frog sitting on its head - actually a disguised container for tobacco.

Gardens - They were well kept, wide and expansive with greenhouses and water features.

Boat House - famed for featuring a dead body in the Poirot novel Dead Man's Folly  - was a twenty-minute walk from the house.

Tea-Room - Didn't pass my cappuccino float test - but the sponge cake was to die for.

Thoughts: Quite enjoyed the visit. Haven't read any of her novels. But after immersing myself in the atmosphere think I'll pick one up from the library. Definitely worth visiting if you're a fan. But the entrance fee is bonkers for ordinary folk.

Final aside - she didn't write any novels there - well that's what a guide said - can't believe she didn't have a notebook handy somewhere.