Agatha Christie London guide: places, plays, books, and tours

London is a great place for Agatha Christie fans. This Agatha Christie London guide covers locations, theatre, books, and guided tours.

Though she was born outside of London, Christie spent many years there, wrote many of her books there, and was inspired by places around the city.

I’ve been a fan of Agatha Christie’s mysteries since my early teens. I enjoyed seeing her plays in London and visiting some of the places connected to her biography and mentioned in her books.

I created this Agatha Christie London guide for anyone who loves Agatha Christie and wants to plan a unique Christie themed visit to London.

London theatre shows by Agatha Christie

Agatha Christie was a wonderful novelist, but she was also a playwright.

Two of her plays are currently running in London’s West End: The Mousetrap and Witness For The Prosecution.

Both have been running for many years and one of them broke a world record.

Both plays are included in my guide to the best London West End plays for first timers.

The Mousetrap

Agatha Christie The Mousetrap is the world’s longest-running play. A perennial theatre production. It’s been running in West End since 1952. You’ll be entering a living piece of theatre history.

The plot features a group of strangers stranded in a country house during a snowstorm in the company of a killer.

It’s a classic whodunnit, the ultimate murder mystery, both comic and the serious.

I enjoyed every moment of it.

Some people say they could guess the ending, but I couldn’t and I loved the surprising resolution.

St Martin’s Theatre celebrate the longest running show ever with a counter that shows you how many performances of The Mousetrap have taken place so far.

You can also see the 2002 blue plaque on the wall outside, for the 50th anniversary performance of The Mousetrap at St Martin’s Theatre.

It opened on November 25, 1952, at the Ambassadors Theatre and later moved to the St Martin’s Theatre in 1974.

The Mousetrap – quick tips

• The Mousetrap is on every evening, except Sunday, with matinees on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday.

• The show lasts 2 hours and 15 minutes.

• You can sometimes meet the cast at the stage door after the show.

• The best seats are the in stalls or the dress circle. You can get more affordable seats in the upper circle, but the view from up there isn’t great.

• There’s a bar in the theatre and you can also get a 2-course pre-theatre meal nearby.

---

Witness for the Prosecution

Witness for the Prosecution is a fun and fascinating murder mystery and courtroom drama.

One of the most unique things about this play is the venue: this entire play is staged in the authentic setting of the Council Chamber at County Hall.

It’s designed to look and feel like a courthouse, making the experience more immersive than an ordinary West End theatre. It even involves some (optional) audience participation.

If you’ve only ever read Christie on the page, this is what it feels like to step inside one of her plots.

I enjoyed the evening, the setting, the acting, and most importantly, the plot twists.

This play keeps you in suspense until the very last moment.

Witness for the Prosecution – quick tips

• My tip for choosing good seats for this show is to pick the left side of the courtroom stalls. You’ll get a clear view of the stage and the actors are often facing that way.

• County Hall is close to Waterloo Station and to the London Eye.

• The play lasts 2 hours and 15 minutes.

• As this isn’t your old West End theatre, the seats are comfortable, the legroom is excellent, and some seats have a table where you can place your drink.

• Find out more in my full review of Witness for the Prosecution.

Places in London for Agatha Christie fans

There are many locations in London associated with Agatha Christie. Places where she lived or visited, places she mentioned in her books, and film locations.

Here’s my selection of top Christie spots to see in London.

Agatha Christie memorial

The Agatha Christie memorial in London is a bronze statue shaped like an open book, with Christie’s portrait at its centre and her well-known characters, Miss Marple and Hercule Poirot on each side of her, with symbolic illustrations of a train and a typewriter.

This memorial was unveiled in 2012 to mark 60 years and 25,000 London performances of The Mousetrap.

This spot is at close to St Martin’s Theatre, at St Martin’s Cross in Covent Garden, moments from Leicester Square.

It’s super central, so you’re likely to see it when you walk around central London.

There are many small details to spot in this memorial. It’s worth looking at from all sides.

I spent a few minutes reading the text beneath the portrait, though it’s small and dark and not very legible… I had to take a photo and enlarge it to read it properly. It covers some biographical details and famous works.

I was glad to see some other fans taking pictures of the statue while I was there.

Address: Cranbourn St, London WC2H 7AB

Eltham Palace

Eltham Palace is an unusual palace in London.

It’s a medieval palace originally, but it was redesigned in the 1930s, so it features an odd mix of styles: glamorous Art Deco interiors alongside some of the old architecture.

What does Eltham Palace have to do with Agatha Christie?

Because of its unique interiors, it was used as a filming location for TV and movie adaptations of Christie’s work, like Poirot’s Death on the Nile, Three Act Tragedy, and Miss Marple’s What Mrs. McGillicuddy Saw.

Eltham Palace is worth a visit in its own right, especially if you like history and architecture or if you’re looking for unique places in London away from the crowds.

It’s outside the city centre, but worth the trip. I took the Jubilee line to North Greenwich station and then bus 132 directly to Eltham Palace.

Address: Court Rd, London SE9 5NP

The Savoy

Christie was a regular at The Savoy hotel, and so was Poirot.

The Savoy appears in several of her stories, such as Lord Edgware Dies and One, Two, Buckle My Shoe.

It’s about 10 minutes away from St. Martin’s Theatre where The Mousetrap is showing,so you can easily visit both.

It’s beautiful hotel to visit if you like Art Deco design and a popular place for afternoon tea.

Address: The Savoy, Strand, London WC2R 0EZ

Christie’s home in Kensington

The place where Christie lived in 1934-1941, by which point she was already famous.

She wrote at least 16 of her novels while living there.

It’s a beautiful house and you can see the English Heritage blue plaque on the wall. It’s quite high up and I had to zoom in to read it.

The location is in a residential neighbourhood that tourists wouldn’t normally visit, but it’s fairly close to Notting Hill, Holland Park, and Kensington Palace.

Address: 58 Sheffield Terrace, London W8 7NA

The Cross Keys Pub, Chelsea

Christie lived in Chelsea for many years and was one of the regulars at The Cross Keys pub.

The historic pub has a heritage blue plaque that lists some well-known names, including Agatha Christie, Bob Marley, Dylan Thomas and John Singer Sargent.

It then declares: “Celebrated figures drank here”.

The location is mostly residential, but very close to the high street in Chelsea (King’s Road) which is worth visiting for some upscale shops and interesting galleries.

Address: 1 Lawrence Street, Chelsea, London SW3 5NB

See more places and learn more about them on an Agatha Christie guided tour.

Agatha Christie London tour

Take a 2 hour entertaining guided tour to see locations mentioned in Agatha Christie’s books, London spots that inspired her stories, and places where she herself lives and visited.

It covers many central London locations, including Mayfair, Theatreland and Bloomsbury

This tour is a great way to see these places in the their historical context and hear stories about her personal life.

If you’d like to visit Agatha Christie’s birthplace, travel to Torquay, where she was born and raised.

Torquay inspired her books and characters.

Learn about her life and influences on a guided tour in Torquay.

Torquay is in Devon, about 3 hours by train from London.

Agatha Christie books set in London

Many of Agatha Christie’s novels are set in London. Some move between London and other locations.

Here’s a breakdown with a quick plot summary for each of them and the London locations (some are fictional).

The Secret Adversary (1922)

The second novel Christie ever published, and the debut of Tommy and Tuppence Beresford. The two old friends bump into each other after WWI, broke and directionless, and set themselves up as freelance adventurers. They’re soon tangled up with master criminals and a missing government document.

London places: Dover Street Station (now Green Park), a Lyons Tea Room, a den in Soho, the Ritz Hotel, Gloucester Road, and a house off Park Lane.

The Seven Dials Mystery (1929)

A house party ends in suspicious death when a guest is found surrounded by eight alarm clocks, one of them missing. Spirited Lady Eileen “Bundle” Brent heads to London to investigate, and descends into the seedy Seven Dials Club in Covent Garden, where she encounters a secret society and gets mixed up with the criminal underworld.

London places: The Seven Dials area and its club in Covent Garden.

Lord Edgware Dies (1933)

Poirot is embroiled in a complicated divorce case when an American actress entreats him to help while he is dining at the Savoy Hotel with Captain Hastings. Her marriage to Lord Edgware was an utter mistake, but he isn’t willing to let her go. Just 24 hours later, the Baron is dead.

London places: The Savoy Hotel, Lord Edgware’s townhouse in Regent’s Gate.

Cards on the Table (1936)

You are cordially invited to Mr Shaitana’s superb flat in London’s Park Lane for a party like no other. The rich host’s parties are notorious, but this one is designed exclusively for Hercule Poirot: a meeting of murderers who got away with it. With four experts in the room, what could possibly go wrong?

London places: Park Lane (Shaitana’s flat).

One, Two, Buckle my Shoe (1940)

The story starts at the premises of Poirot’s dentist, one Mr Morley, who lives and works on Queen Charlotte Street. Poirot grudgingly leaves his home at Whitehaven Mansions to pay Morley a visit. Not more than an hour after Poirot has left, Mr Morley is found dead. A number of Morley’s patients are investigated, taking readers across London to locations including a large property overlooking the River Thames on Chelsea Embankment, the Savoy Hotel, Battersea Park, Hampstead and Ealing Broadway.

London places: Charlotte Street (Fitzrovia), Whitehaven Mansions, Chelsea Embankment, the Savoy, Battersea Park, Hampstead, Ealing Broadway.

Hickory Ddickory Dock (1955)

This one is a departure from the glitz and glamour of London’s high society. Instead we find ourselves at 26 Hickory Road, where Poirot feels duty bound to assist Miss Lemon’s sister with a bizarre case of thefts at a student hostel at which she is the warden. A puzzling mystery which depicts the fascinating, ordinary lives of city-dwellers in the 50s.

London places: Hickory Road student hostel (somewhere in central London).

The Pale Horse (1961)

This story explores the contrast of modern 1960s London life with the disturbing goings-on in a traditional country village. Narrator Mark Easterbrook finds himself in a trendy Chelsea coffee shop, and observes the “Chelsea set”: young people from wealthy backgrounds who have given it all up to live a bohemian lifestyle. He also enjoys plays at the Old Vic. Later, the murder of a priest occurs in a dingy street near Paddington.

London places: Chelsea coffee shops, the Old Vic theatre, a street near Paddington.

At Bertram’s Hotel (1965)

Join Miss Marple on a two-week break in this London hotel, which she remembers fondly. The story gives ample opportunity to nose around the upper echelons of society from the comfort of the lounge. But nostalgia can’t mask the undercover goings-on. The setting is thought to be inspired by one of Christie’s favourite venues, Brown’s Hotel.

London places: Bertram’s Hotel (probably based on Brown’s Hotel in Mayfair).

Third Girl (1966)

Young Norma Restarick calls on Poirot in obvious distress, concerned that she has committed a murder. Poirot and Ariadne Oliver set out to find out who she is; their investigations take Poirot to Norma’s flatshare at Borodene Mansions in South Kensington, and put Ariadne Oliver in grave danger as she follows a suspect on the underground from Charing Cross, onto a bus to World’s End, and then into a maze of alleyways by the River Thames.

London places: South Kensington, Charing Cross station, World’s End (Chelsea), the Thames riverside.

Save this Agatha Christie London guide on Pinterest