Historic Guest House
Originally built in 1863 as a Victorian mansion house, this accommodation used to be a vicarage. The famous British writer Agatha Christie also loved visiting both as a child and as an adult, and she even based one of her novels, "The Murder at the Vicarage", on the layout of this guest house.
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Year erected: 1863
What is the history of the property?
The house has had many interesting occupiers. Formerly Torre Vicarage, the house was visited by Agatha Christie when she was a child and as an adult she consulted with Reverend Harry Petty on ecclesiastical matters in her novels and was inspired to use the layout of the house in the first full Miss Marple novel, The Murder at the Vicarage.
What was the era and/or the architectural style in which the property was built?
The property is a large Victorian Villa
Is the property surrounded by other historic buildings?
The house is set in a conservation area of other Victorian residences
Has restoration work taken place?
The house was aggressively modernised in the 1970s but we have worked to return some of her glamour!
Are there any elements of particular historical importance at the building?
We have original coving in most rooms with 14 foot ceilings on the ground floor and 12 feet on the first floor. There is some original Victorian coloured glass remaining.
Are there any important guests or previous owners worth mentioning?
The first resident was Captain Cornelius Thomas Augustus Noddall RN retired and family. Decorated during the Crimean War and involved in laying the first transatlantic cable. A later resident Rev Matthew Lamert was related to Charles Dickens by marriage. Agatha Christie lived nearby and visited the house for tea with Rev Harry Petty and family.
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