The Swinging Christies: Agatha Christie in the 1960s

Gray and Mark take the sea tractor over the crashing waves to the magnificent Burgh Island Hotel in Devon. Cut off from the mainland, they discuss Agatha Christie’s Devonshire locations and references in the Swinging works, and then meet Giles Fuchs, proprietor of the Burgh Island Hotel! But will there be a murder? (Spoiler: no.)

You can find us on Instagram ⁠@Christie_Time⁠. We are also on Bluesky at ⁠ChristieTime.com. Our YouTube account is @TheSwingingChristies. 

You can find out more about Burgh Island at BurghIsland.com.

Don't forget - our other podcast, WESTMAPOD, launches on 31 March 2026!

Please subscribe to the podcast so you’re notified every time an episode drops!

Please also consider giving us a star rating and/or reviewing us on your podcatcher of choice.

Our website is ⁠ChristieTime.com⁠.

The Swinging Christies is a Christie Time project by Mark Aldridge and Gray Robert Brown.

00:00:00 - Opening titles

00:00:37 - Introductory chat

00:03:14 - Agatha Christie in Devon

00:16:29 - Devon in the Swinging Christies texts

00:27:15 - Interview with Giles Fuchs, proprietor of the Burgh Island Hotel

00:38:25 - Next episode, how to get in touch

00:39:30 - Closing titles

00:39:45 - Coda

New year, new us…new world? Since before the 1960s, scientists have been warning at the negative human impact on the world around us, but it’s a topic that really hit the headlines in the Swinging era. Interestingly, it’s a thread that can be traced through some of Agatha Christie’s 1960s writing too… Join Mark and Gray for a brand new year on The Swinging Christies! PLUS: an announcement!

You can find us on Instagram ⁠@Christie_Time⁠. We are also on Bluesky at ⁠ChristieTime.com. Our YouTube account is @TheSwingingChristies. 

WESTMAPOD launches on 31 March 2026!

Please subscribe to the podcast so you’re notified every time an episode drops!

Please also consider giving us a star rating and/or reviewing us on your podcatcher of choice.

Our website is ⁠ChristieTime.com⁠.

This episode is dedicated to Chandra Maharaj.

The Swinging Christies is a Christie Time project by Mark Aldridge and Gray Robert Brown.

00:00:00 - Dedication

00:00:44 - Opening titles

00:01:20 - Introductory chat

00:03:28 - An announcement 

00:06:09 - Climate Change in the 1960s

00:20:52 - In the Cool of the Evening from Star Over Bethlehem (1965)

00:32:47 - Case study: The Birds (1963)

00:42:22 - Enter Albert!

00:54:09 - Next episode, how to get in touch

00:55:42 - Closing titles

00:56:09 - Coda

Solutions revealed! - Hallowe'en Party

TW: the death of the planet

Mark and Gray aka Donner and Blitzen are here with the now-annual Swinging Christies Christmas extravaganza! This time the discussion is about the ITV Agatha Christie’s Poirot David Suchet adaptations of The Mystery of the Spanish/Baghdad Chest, and The Theft of the Royal Ruby, aka The Adventure of the Christmas Pudding! Expect an abundance of sleigh bells, a tuneful game, two Edward Claytons, and a partridge in a pear tree!

You can find us on Instagram ⁠@Christie_Time⁠. We are also on Bluesky at ⁠ChristieTime.com⁠. Our YouTube account is @TheSwingingChristies. 

Please subscribe to the podcast so you’re notified every time an episode drops!

Please also consider giving us a star rating and/or reviewing us on your podcatcher of choice.

Our website is ⁠ChristieTime.com⁠.

The Swinging Christies is a Christie Time project by Mark Aldridge and Gray Robert Brown.

00:00:00 - Opening titles

00:00:40- Introductory chat

00:02:45 - Christmas song game!

00:06:50 - The Mystery of the Spanish Chest (1991)

00:30:47 - The Theft of the Royal Ruby (1991)

00:41:55 - The Return of the Mailbag

00:52:32 - Next episode, how to get in touch

00:53:53 - Closing titles

00:54:21 - Coda

Solutions revealed - The Mystery of the Baghdad/Spanish Chest, The Mirror Crack’d from Side to Side

TW: being stabbed through the eye (Merry Christmas!)

Gray and Mark are sunning themselves in Puerto de la Cruz for Tenerife’s International Agatha Christie Festival! In the 1920s, Agatha came to this beautiful island to get away from it all, but even later, in the 1960s, the shadows of that dark time in her life were still evident.

You can find us on Instagram ⁠@Christie_Time⁠. We are also on Bluesky at ⁠christietime.bsky.social⁠. Our YouTube account is @TheSwingingChristies. 

Please subscribe to the podcast so you’re notified every time an episode drops!

Please also consider giving us a star rating and/or reviewing us on your podcatcher of choice.

Our website is ⁠ChristieTime.com⁠.

The Swinging Christies is a Christie Time project by Mark Aldridge and Gray Robert Brown.

00:00:00 - Opening titles

00:00:40 - Introductory chat

00:04:16 -  The Disappearance - in Agatha’s own words

00:24:46 - The Disappearance in Agatha’s Swinging works, from Davenham to Marina Gregg

00:57:22 - Next episode, how to get in touch

00:59:15 - Closing titles

00:59:38 - Coda

Solutions revealed - Endless Night, The Disappearance of Mr Davenheim, The Dream, Third Girl

TW: references to suicide, mental health crises, quoted outdated terminology, deaths and bereavements

Mwahahaha! It’s the now-traditional The Swinging Christies x Hallowe’en extravaganza, and this year Mark and Gray are talking about the recent film adaptation of Hallowe’en Party, A Haunting in Venice (2023). What do we make of the 1969 setting moved to 1947? Will we survive a risky game of apple bobbing, in a very non-galvanised bucket? Listen on to find out.

You can find us on Instagram ⁠@Christie_Time⁠. We are also on Bluesky at ⁠christietime.bsky.social⁠. Our YouTube account is @TheSwingingChristies. 

Please subscribe to the podcast so you’re notified every time an episode drops!

Please also consider giving us a star rating and/or reviewing us on your podcatcher of choice.

Our website is ⁠ChristieTime.com⁠.

The Swinging Christies is a Christie Time project by Mark Aldridge and Gray Robert Brown.

Next episode: we're doing something we have never done before...

00:00:00 - Opening titles

00:00:40 - Introductory chat

00:03:12 - A Haunting in Venice

00:18:33 - Apple bobbing!

00:22:09 - Differences between Hallowe’en Party and A Haunting in Venice

00:47:51 - How to get in touch

00:48:54 - Closing titles

00:49:21 - Coda

Solutions revealed - Hallowe’en Party, The Pale Horse, Third Girl

TW: brief discussion of eating disorders and violence against children

It’s The Swinging Christies as you've never heard (or seen) it before - with a live audience! Join Mark and Gray at the 2025 International Agatha Christie Festival in Torquay, Devon, for this special recorded and filmed episode all about the  way Agatha Christie’s books were packaged for a whole new Swinging era! Expect laughs, mishaps, ribbing, and even the occasional fact.

With heartfelt thanks to everyone at the festival for making this happen, from the volunteers to the organisers to the bookshop, and a special thanks to our brilliant director and editor for this episode, John Tomkins of Emberlense Productions.

You can find us on Instagram ⁠@Christie_Time⁠. We are also on Bluesky at ⁠christietime.bsky.social⁠. Our YouTube account is @TheSwingingChristies. 

Please subscribe to the podcast so you’re notified every time an episode drops!

Please also consider giving us a star rating and/or reviewing us on your podcatcher of choice.

Our website is ⁠ChristieTime.com⁠.

The Swinging Christies is a Christie Time project by Mark Aldridge and Gray Robert Brown.

Next episode: we’re going apple bobbing… It’s the Hallowe’en special!

00:00:00 - Opening titles

00:04:15 - Colour

00:17:50 - Shape

00:26:54 - Pattern

00:31:18 - Headline

00:34:21 - Femme

00:39:10 - Psychedelia

00:45:48 - Wrap up, next episode

00:48:48 - Closing titles

Solutions revealed - Cat among the Pigeons

Gray and Mark meet Mystery Steve who has travelled all the way from Australia! Steve has been examining the way Agatha Christie titles have been translated into other languages. Steve’s project has just hit the 1960s, so we wanted to get him onto the podcast for the full lowdown. Travel the world with Gray, Mark and Steve!

You can find us on Instagram ⁠@Christie_Time⁠. We are also on Bluesky at ⁠christietime.bsky.social⁠. Our YouTube account is @TheSwingingChristies. 

Please subscribe to the podcast so you’re notified every time an episode drops!

Please also consider giving us a star rating and/or reviewing us on your podcatcher of choice.

Our website is ⁠ChristieTime.com⁠.

The Swinging Christies is a Christie Time project by Mark Aldridge and Gray Robert Brown.

Next episode: we’re going LIVE!

00:00:00 - Opening titles

00:00: 40- Introductory chat

00:01:58 - Mystery Steve: Agatha Christie - Titles in Translation

00:10;41 - Cat Among the Pigeons (1959)

00:15:16 - The Adventure of the Christmas Pudding (1960)

00:20:06 - The Pale Horse (1961)

00:24:10 - The Mirror Crack’d from Side to Side (1962)

00:27:52 - The Clocks (1963)

00:31:48 - A Caribbean Mystery (1964)

00:34:12 - At Bertram’s Hotel (1965)

00:37:23 - Third Girl (1966)

00:42:24 - Endless Night (1967)

00:46:13 - By the Pricking of My Thumbs (1968)

00:49:48 - Hallowe’en Party (1969)

00:56:37 - Passenger to Frankfurt (1970)

00:57:58 - Wrap up, next episode

01:00:58 - Closing titles

01:02:08 - Coda

Solutions revealed - The Pale Horse, The Mirror Crack’d from Side to Side, Endless Night, By the Pricking of My Thumbs

Gray and Mark head to beautiful Belfast to chat to novelist and Agatha Christie fan Jan Carson. Jan has been tackling the Troubles in her work for some time, and we want to discuss with her Christie’s Troubles references in Passenger to Frankfurt, as well as Irish characters and references in other Swinging books - all the way from The Pale Horse to By the Pricking of My Thumbs!

You can find us on Instagram ⁠@Christie_Time⁠. We are also on Bluesky at ⁠christietime.bsky.social⁠. Our YouTube account is @TheSwingingChristies. 

Please subscribe to the podcast so you’re notified every time an episode drops!

Please also consider giving us a star rating and/or reviewing us on your podcatcher of choice.

Our website is ⁠ChristieTime.com⁠.

The Swinging Christies is a Christie Time project by Mark Aldridge and Gray Robert Brown.

Next episode: we’re going global… again…!

00:00:00 - Opening titles

00:00:47 - Introductory chat in Belfast

00:02:46 - Interview with Jan Carson and discussion of Ireland in the Swinging Christies

00:37:58 - The Troubles

00:52:46 - Next episode, how to get in touch

00:54:03 - Closing titles

00:54:31 - Coda

Solutions revealed! - The Pale Horse, At Bertram’s Hotel, Endless Night, Passenger to Frankfurt

TW: Racist and xenophobic language quoted

Two wickedly witty women writers, separated only by the Atlantic! This episode, Gray and Mark carry on their American adventures and discuss the similarities and differences between the works of Agatha Christie and Shirley Jackson. Specifically focussing on Shirley’s Swinging era - The Haunting of Hill House and We Have Always Lived in the Castle!

You can find us on Instagram ⁠@Christie_Time⁠. We are also on Bluesky at ⁠christietime.bsky.social⁠. Our YouTube account is @TheSwingingChristies. 

Please subscribe to the podcast so you’re notified every time an episode drops!

Please also consider giving us a star rating and/or reviewing us on your podcatcher of choice.

Our website is ⁠ChristieTime.com⁠.

The Swinging Christies is a Christie Time project by Mark Aldridge and Gray Robert Brown.

Next episode: we’re heading to Belfast!

00:00:00 - Opening titles

00:00:40 - Introductory chat, recorded in Greenwich, New York

00:05:40 - Agatha Christie and Shirley Jackson

00:20:25 - Swinging Shirley work-by-work

01:03:00 - Next episode, how to get in touch

01:05:02 - Closing titles

01:05:30 - Coda

Solutions revealed! - Five Little Pigs, Third Girl

Mrs Christie went to Washington, and Dr Aldridge and Mr Brown are following suit! This episode, we get the train to Washington DC to uncover the truth about how an American Christie fan would REALLY have experienced a Swinging Christie…

You can find us on Instagram ⁠@Christie_Time⁠. We are also on Bluesky at ⁠christietime.bsky.social⁠.

Please subscribe to us, and  rate and review us on your podcatcher of choice.

Our website is ⁠ChristieTime.com⁠.

The Swinging Christies is a Christie Time project by Mark Aldridge and Gray Robert Brown.

Next episode: we look at Agatha Christie alongside a contemporary - Shirley Jackson!

00:00:00 - Opening titles

00:00:43 - Introductory chat

00:01:44 - Agatha, Washington and America in the 1960s, down the Mall 

00:09:41 - Discoveries in the Library of Congress

00:43:37 - Wrap up, the National Museum of African American History and Culture

00:47:24 - Next episode, how to get in touch

00:49:09 - Closing titles

00:49:36 - Coda