The Swinging Christies: Agatha Christie in the 1960s
The Swinging Christies
Sex. Drugs. Rock 'n' Roll. Agatha Christie?? Agatha Christie may not be the first person you think of when you think of the Swinging Sixties, but her writing ha...
Mark and Gray ring in the New Year with a discussion of the 1960s trend for… actually not being very 1960s at all! But just how much of Christie’s 1960s writing harks back to the Edwardian and Victorian eras? Did they even ‘swing’ back then??
You can listen to our guest spot on the All About Agatha podcast, here.
You can read our special article for the Agatha Christie website here.
You can read Mark’s paper about Agatha Christie’s Charles Dickens’s Bleak House here.
And tickets and info for The Mirror Crack'd at the Tower Theatre can be found here!
You can find us on Instagram (as well as X) @Christie_Time. We are on BlueSky at christietime.bsky.social. Please do rate and review us wherever you get your podcasts.
Our website is ChristieTime.com.
The Swinging Christies is a Christie Time project by Mark Aldridge and Gray Robert Brown.
Next episode: wait and see…
00:00:00 - Opening titles
00:00:51 - Introductory chat
00:04:29 - The Sixties weren’t Swinging for everyone
00:15:38 - Old-new locations
00:58:02 - The Next Generation
01:04:28 - Servants and service
01:14:44 - Reviving the greats: Shakespeare, Tennyson, Austen, Brontë
01:22:37 - Bleak House by Agatha Christie
01:33:57 - Brave monkey puzzle: remembering Christie’s childhood home
01:37:22 - Next episode, how to get in touch
01:38:33 - Closing titles
01:39:01 - Coda
Solutions revealed! - The Mirror Crack’d from Side to Side, At Bertram’s Hotel
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1:40:48
Still Swinging (Bonus Episode) - Christmas
There’s always Christie at Christmas! Join Mark and Gray making the yuletide gay with a discussion about Christie’s festive writings from the 1960s. Come swing around the Christmas tree!
You can read our special article for the Agatha Christie website here.
You can find us on Instagram (as well as X) @Christie_Time. We are on Bluesky at christietime.bsky.social. Please do rate and review us wherever you get your podcasts.
Our website is ChristieTime.com.
The Swinging Christies is a Christie Time project by Mark Aldridge and Gray Robert Brown.
Next episode: Revivalism
00:00:00 - Opening titles
00:00:43 - Introductory chat
00:07:24 - A Christie for Christmas: a tale as old as time?
00:16:40 - Agatha Christiemas
00:20:20 - Christmas Then and Now - from Christmas Adventure (1923) to The Adventure of the Christmas Pudding (1960)
00:28:26 - The Mysteries of the Spanish and Baghdad Chests (1932, 1960)
00:32:46 - Star Over Bethlehem (1965)
00:39:46 - Next episode, how to get in touch
00:41:27 - Closing titles
00:41:54 - Coda
Solutions revealed! - Star Over Bethlehem (titular story from the Star Over Bethlehem collection)
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42:58
Still Swinging (Bonus Episode) - From the Archive
In a very special episode, join Mark and Gray as they delve deep into Agatha Christie’s family archive and uncover some seldom-seen 1960s gems…
You can find us on Instagram (as well as X) @Christie_Time. We are on Bluesky at christietime.bsky.social. Please do rate and review us wherever you get your podcasts.
Our website is Christietime.com.
The Swinging Christies is a Christie Time project by Mark Aldridge and Gray Robert Brown.
Next episode: it's Christmas!
00:00:00 - Opening titles
00:00:39 - Introductory chat at the train station
00:01:50 - We arrive at the archive!
00:05:30 - Death Beat
00:31:44 - Miss Perry
00:58:53 - Other archive gems, Agatha Christie’s writing process
01:12:46 - Back at Paddington, how to get in touch
01:14:29 - Closing titles
01:14:57 - Coda
Solutions revealed! - Endless Night
TW: violence against women
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1:16:01
Still Swinging (Bonus Episode) - Hallowe'en
Gray and Mark go trick-or-treating and uncover the truth about Hallowe’en parties in the 1960s, via Hallowe’en Party by Agatha Christie! They even risk their lives - and fingers - by playing a fiery game of Snapdragon!
You can find us on Instagram (as well as X) @Christie_Time. We are on Bluesky at christietime.bsky.social. Please do rate and review us wherever you get your podcasts.
Our website is ChristieTime.com.
The Swinging Christies is a Christie Time project by Mark Aldridge and Gray Robert Brown.
You can listen to the audiobook of ‘Agatha Christie’s Marple’ via Audible, Spotify and all other good audio retailers.
Next episode: we delve into the Agatha Archives!
00:00:00 - Opening titles
00:00:41 - Introductory chat
00:02:38 - Origins of Hallowe’en
00:15:57 - Hallowe’en in the 1960s
00:28:01 - What would a 1960s Hallowe’en party have entailed? Apple bobbing, Jack o’lanterns, trick or treating, games
00:46:10 - We play Snapdragon!
00:51:08 - More games, the broomstick competition
00:57:08 - Next episode, how to get in touch
00:58:56 - Closing titles
00:59:25 - Coda
Solutions revealed - Hallowe’en Party!
TW: murder of children
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1:01:39
Interview with Mark Aldridge, author of Agatha Christie’s Marple, and commentary for Murder She Said
To mark (ha) the publication of Mark’s new book, ‘Agatha Christie’s Marple: Expert on Wickedness’, Mark and Gray have recorded a special commentary of the 1961 Miss Marple film, Murder She Said. Along the way Mark teases some nuggets of gold from his new book!
Listen on to the end for an exclusive sneak peek of the audiobook of ‘Agatha Christie’s Marple’, read by Jane Slavin!
You can find us on Instagram (as well as X) @Christie_Time. We are on Bluesky at christietime.bsky.social. Please do rate and review us wherever you get your podcasts.
Our website is ChristieTime.com.
The Swinging Christies is a Christie Time project by Mark Aldridge and Gray Robert Brown.
You can download the audiobook of ‘Agatha Christie’s Marple’, read by Jane Slavin, via Audible, Spotify and all good audio retailers.
Next episode: Hallowe'en!
00:00:00 - Opening titles
00:00:38 - Interview with Mark Aldridge
00:05:48 - Murder She Wrote commentary
01:29:11 - Next episode, how to get in touch
01:30:05 - Closing titles
01:30:33 - Extract from the audiobook of 'Agatha Christie’s Marple'
Solutions revealed! - 4.50 from Paddington
About The Swinging Christies: Agatha Christie in the 1960s
Sex. Drugs. Rock 'n' Roll. Agatha Christie?? Agatha Christie may not be the first person you think of when you think of the Swinging Sixties, but her writing has much to say about the big topics of the day. Join Dr Mark Aldridge and Gray Robert Brown on a rad journey through time with the Queen of Crime.
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