Page 182 - WINE DINE AND TRAVEL SUMMER 2022 DISCOVERING MADRID

“The loveliest place in the world – it quite husband Max Mallowan, a famous archeologist
takes my breath away,” said Christie, describing of the Middle East who was 14 years younger
the Greenway Estate's world of tranquility than Agatha.
along the slow-flowing River Dart near Dart- An earlier marriage, in 1914 to Archibald
mouth. Christie, a Royal Flying Corps aviator, ended in
It was here, at Greenway, where Agatha would divorce when her husband told her he was in
share her latest novel with family and guests to love with another woman.
gauge their reactions before publication, as well That marital breakup led to the greatest of
as play parlour games that would reveal their mysteries involving Agatha Christie. In 1926,
personalities through a list of confessions of se- she disappeared, without a trace. For 11 days,
cret pleasures such as favorite literary charac- newspapers carried stories about the search for
ters or “your idea the missing mys-
of happiness.” tery writer. Her car
Guests were in- had been found
vited to play ten- abandoned on a
nis on the country trail, with
estate's court, or no sign of Agatha.
cricket or cro- Days later, she was
quet. recognized as a
Outside are a guest of the Old
series of formal Swan Hotel (then
gardens and awe- the Hydro) in Har-
inspiring views of rogate, England.
the river and Agatha never
countryside be- talked or wrote
low. There's a about the mystery,
Peach House, but did leave one
where peaches, clue. At the hotel,
apricots and nec- she registered un-
tarines are der the name
grown, and re- “Theresa Neele.”
minders of Neele was the
Greenway Nurs- name of her hus-
ery, an enterpirse band's mistress.
previously operated by Agatha's son-in-law, An- Agatha and Max, whom she married in 1930,
thony Hicks. Today, vegetables raised here stock first saw Greenway, near her birthplace of
the estate's cafe. Elsewhere, there are spectac- Torquay, in a magazine ad. They went to see the
ular (in season) displays of dahlias, hydrangeas house, found that it was on offer for a bargain
and camellias well as a refreshing “Fernery.” price of 6,000 pounds and bought it in 1938 as
Tucked away is a cemetery for the family's pets. war clouds loomed on the horizon.
Owned and operated by Britain's National Not overwhelming in size, Greenway was built
Trust, Greenway house and grounds are open in the late 18th century for a sea merchant, but
for visitors to gain an intimate knowledge of the a home has stood on the site for over 400 years.
life of one of the world's best-selling authors.
The couple lived here as a summer and holiday
The setting is how the house would have home until their deaths – Agatha in 1976 and
looked in the mid-1950s, when Christie was at Max in 1978. Christie's daughter Rosalind and
the top of her game, living here with her second her husband Anthony Hicks lived here until

182 WINE DINE & TRAVEL MAGAZINE SUMMER 2022