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!
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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 (1963)
00:34:12 - At Bertram’s Hotel (1964)
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)
0:56:37 - 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
Mark and Gray take Manhattan in the first in this very special miniseries recorded in the USA. In New York, Gray and Mark discuss Agatha’s 1960s connections to America, plus their discoveries in papers held at the Princeton University Archive.
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: Part 2 of Swinging USA - we go to Washington DC!
00:00:00 - Opening titles
00:00:40 - Introductory chat at Heathrow airport
00:03:57 - Agatha and America in the 1960s at Central Park
00:32:38 - Discoveries in the Princeton Archive
00:55:49 - Wrap up, Schubert Archive, and off to Washington DC!
00:58:30 - How to get in touch
00:59:41 - Closing titles
01:00:12 - Coda
Solutions revealed! - Cat Among the Pigeons, The Clocks, The Pale Horse, At Bertram’s Hotel
Mark and Gray travel to India (metaphorically) in search of the Queen of Crime! Along the way, they discuss various Hindi and Bengali adaptations, and meet with friend-of-the-podcast and expert adaptor/writer Ayeesha Menon to discuss her Mumbai stage version of The Mirror Crack’d!
You can find us on Instagram @Christie_Time. We are on Bluesky at christietime.bsky.social. Please do subscribe, rate and review us wherever you get your podcasts.
Our website is ChristieTime.com.
Ayeesha Menon can be found via her production company Goldhawk Productions. Her excellent drama podcast Mumbai Crime is available on all good podcatchers.
The Swinging Christies is a Christie Time project by Mark Aldridge and Gray Robert Brown.
Next episode: stay tuned…!
0:00:00 - Opening titles
00:00:41 - Introductory chat
00:06:25 - Agatha and India
00:14:57 - Chupi Chupi Aashey (1960 Bengali version of The Mousetrap)
00:29:51 - Gumnaam (1965 Hindi version of And Then There Were None)
00:39:42 - Shubho Mahurat (2003 Bengali version of The Mirror Crack’d from Side to Side)
00:56:12 - Interview with Ayeesha Menon, adaptor of The Mirror Crack’d for the Mumbai stage
01:45:12 - How to get in touch
01:46:35 - Closing titles
01:47:02 - Coda
Solutions revealed! - The Mirror Crack’d from Side to Side. NOT THE MOUSETRAP! We would never!
TW: discussion of struggle with fertility, miscarriage, IVF etc.
Miss Marple isn’t an old duffer - she’s a swinging cat! At least that’s what Mark and Gray discover this episode when they shine a light on Agatha Christie’s beloved sleuth.
In particular we look at her 1960s outings, plus her Swinging-era cases in the recent 2021 short story collection, in stories by Alyssa Cole, Naomi Alderman, Jean Kwok, Dreda Say Mitchell, Karen M. McManus and Leigh Bardugo.
You can find us on Instagram @Christie_Time. We are on Bluesky at christietime.bsky.social. Please do subscribe, 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: we travel to India!
00:00:00 - Opening titles
00:00:50 - Introductory chat
00:07:00 - Why the Sixties belong to Miss Marple
00:15:09 - The Swinging-era Marple: Twelve New Stories
00:19:01 - Miss Marple Takes Manhattan by Alyssa Cole
00:29:20 - The Open Mind by Naomi Alderman
00:41:45 - The Jade Empress by Jean Kwok
00:44:43 - A Deadly Wedding Day by Dreda Say Mitchell
00:52:44 - The Murdering Sort by Karen M. McManus
00:58:26 - The Disappearance by Leigh Bardugo
01:04:59 - Tackling racism in these stories
01:16:17 - How to get in touch
01:17:17 - Closing titles
01:17:44 - Coda
TW: discussion of racism and antisemitism
A talented British author, a story about machinations in a girls’ school… How much do Cat Among the Pigeons by Agatha Christie and The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie by Muriel Spark have in common? Mark and Gray investigate…
Featuring (from 5 mins in) a recording of a talk originally given by Gray for Romancing the Gothic, with kind permission of Dr Sam Hirst.
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: stay tuned…!
00:00:00 - Opening titles
00:00:53 - Introductory chat
00:05:00 - Gray’s Muriel Spark talk
00:38:24 - Mark and Gray debrief
00:57:21 - How to get in touch
00:58:58 - Closing titles
00:59:26 - Coda
Solutions revealed! - The Plymouth Express, Witness for the Prosecution, Lord Edgware Dies, Towards Zero
Sparks spoiled! - The Driver’s Seat, The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie
TW: violence against women
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.
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
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)
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
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
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 Said 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
You catch Mark and Gray in a reflective mood, as they reunite for a retrospective on the series so far - everything they have learned and anything they missed along the way, with the help of some lovely listener feedback!
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: watch this space…
00:00:00 - Opening titles
00:00:38 - Introductory chat
00:04:54 - Recapping the series so far
00:17:11 - Corrections, clarifications, extras
00:30:47 - The Mailbag
00:59:09 - Next episode, how to get in touch
01:01:34 - Closing titles
01:01:59 - Coda
Solutions revealed! - The Mirror Crack’d from Side to Side
TW: racist saying quoted
Mark and Gray dodge the paparazzi and marvel at Christie’s fame, including her success in the theatre, on screen, and around the world. But surely it’s not the podcast’s curtain call..? Find out what’s happening next for The Swinging Christies!
Includes interview clips from Mathew Prichard and Agatha Christie herself!
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: Reflections
00:00:00 - Opening titles
00:00:59 - Introductory chat
00:03:11 - The 1960s: Christie’s most successful decade?
00:15:14 - Christie in Theatreland, Mathew Prichard
00:33:45 - Christie on the small screen, Mathew Prichard
00:52:53 - Agatha Christie the celebrity
01:09:49 - Christie’s biggest fans
01:15:55 - Publicity and press
01:23:09 - Mary Westmacott
01:26:27 - Agatha Christie’s Autobiography
01:29:32 - Christie’s Late Style
01:37:09 - Next episode, how to get in touch
01:41:01 - Closing titles
01:41:28 - Coda
The clock is ticking for Mark and Gray, as The Swinging Christies examines Agatha Christie's references to the advancement of technology in the 1960s and the Cold War!
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: Fame
00:00:00 - Opening titles
00:00:50 - Introductory chat
00:05:38 - Why did it feel like the end of the world in the 1960s?
00:15:31 - The Cuban Missile Crisis aka a Caribbean Mystery
00:30:11 - The Doomsday Clock and The Clocks
00:37:45 - The Bomb and Ban the Bomb, MAD, détente
00:49:46 - Global student movements and Passenger to Frankfurt
00:53:15 - Espionage
01:17:52 - Scientific advancements
01:33:10 - Space exploration
01:39:02 - Next episode, how to get in touch
01:40:27 - Closing titles
01:40:53 - Coda
Solutions revealed! - The Clocks, Ordeal by Innocence
This episode of The Swinging Christies explores globaliastion, the US-UK cultural exchange, the decline of the British Empire and the rise of the Civil Rights movement - all topics that were swirling whilst Agatha Christie was writing!
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: Armageddon
00:00:00 - Opening titles
00:00:50 - Introductory chat
00:05:05 - Agatha Christie in the world
00:08:54 - The ongoing disintegration of the British Empire
00:27:10 - Increasing multiculturalism and racism
00:38:53 - Joining the EEC
00:43:04 - Anglo-American cultural exchange
00:59:39 - Travel and transport
01:13:10 - Citizens of the world
01:15:49 - Next episode, how to get in touch
01:17:14 - Closing titles
01:17:40 - Coda
Solutions revealed! - A Caribbean Mystery, Endless Night
TW: Discussions of racism and xenophobia, including some racist language in quoted material
Tune in to the sixth episode of The Swinging Christies, drop everything and peace out! Mark and Gray examine the references to drugs in Agatha Christie's 60s novels, plays, films and short stories. Purple hearts for everyone!
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: Empire
00:00:00 - Opening titles
00:00:55 - Introductory chat
00:01:46 - Drugs everywhere in the 1960s!
00:04:01 - Christie in the Dispensary
00:16:37 - Christie’s invented poisons - Calmo, Serenite, Benvo
00:29:28 - Real poisons in the Swinging books and adaptations
00:35:06 - Thallium and The Pale Horse
00:37:27 - Purple hearts and Third Girl
00:43:16 - Ups and downs with uppers and downers
00:57:23 - The Harlequin Tea Set
00:59:58 - Psychedelia
01:09:55 - Next episode, how to get in touch
01:10:10 - Closing titles
01:11:38 - Coda
Solutions revealed! - A Caribbean Mystery, Third Girl, The Mirror Crack’d from Side to Side, Endless Night, The Pale Horse