Listen&Learn: Agatha Christie

Posted by: Jaksyn Peacock

Learn about the mystery writer who became part of a real-life mystery.

Pre-listening vocabulary

mystery: a book genre about solving crimes
detective: a person who investigates crimes
pseudonym: a fake name
press: the newspapers
temporary: lasting for only a short time
amnesia: a condition that causes a person to forget details of their life

Listening activity

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Gapfill exercise

Comprehension questions

[wp_quiz id=”20605″]

Discussion/essay questions

Do you like to read mystery novels? Why or why not?

Transcript

Agatha Christie was a famous mystery writer. She was born in Torquay, England in 1890. Throughout her life, Christie published 66 novels, as well as some short stories. Many of them followed Hercule Poirot, Christie’s most famous detective character. Christie’s life became especially interesting to the public when she mysteriously disappeared in 1926. She was found at a spa 11 days later, where she was staying under a pseudonym. Christie’s husband later told the press that she’d had temporary amnesia. However, many people believed that there was more to the story. After Christie returned home, she rarely spoke about her disappearance, but she continued to write mystery novels up until her death in 1976. Her stories have since sold over 100 million copies.

Written and recorded by Jaksyn Peacock for EnglishClub

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29 comments

English Club Indonesia says:

I love reading mystery novels. Every story has a different way to solve the mystery, and some of them will leave the ending’s interpretation to the readers.
dd says:

I didnt knew that !
Emilia says:

I loved the story,is very interesting ,im learn about Agatha Christie and got so fun. 10 stars
Emilia says:

I liked the story,is very interesting ,im learn about Agatha Christie and got so fun. 10 stars
Paulina says:

I really like the story, It was interesting and I also want to disappear at a spa for 11 days.
shaheen says:

I have got ample liking for her mysteries. Thanks for sharing Agatha Christie’s life here.
Anna says:

I like this story.
Soifiya says:

The lesson it’s good
Pushpa Pathirana says:

I like to read mystery novels because this type novels are very fun and interesting. After we read this we can see people dark side as well as i learned new words Pseudonym and amnesia. Still I did not read her novels and i try to read her books.Thanks
Lam Nguyen Hoang says:

It is good for me to improve my listening comprehension. I learn 2 new vocabulary are pseudonym and amnesia. Hope to receive more podcasts from you. By the way, I don’t know the police were investigated for her death or not?
Reza says:

I love her personalities and watch TV for her serials.
Amala says:

IT is invaluable to me. Thank you
Patricia Seymour says:

Agatha has been my favorite novelist for years! Her disappearance creates a mystery within itself. What else could one expect from a woman of mystery?
Bleidy Sandoval says:

Excelent activity
Kym says:

Thank you for sharing.
lan says:

no
lola says:

Absolutely wonderful story. Indeed it was interesting for me. thank you!
Americo Serrano says:

Agatha Christie was a famous detective and wrote several crime novels.
I was always interested in this lady when I was young.
I live in Portugal and I am learning English via an English class which I really like.
Ariana Vieira says:

I stayed in Torquay for a month in 1995. I am from Brazil, but England is the second country from my heart. Her city is amazing, there is Agatha Christie’s museum and many places that references, her. I hope one day I will be back there again. Her novels are really good, and had visited many places from her books is amazing.
João Emiliano says:

It is really interesting to know about Agatha Christie’s life. She is fantastic and really good at writing mystery novels. I loved reading a little about her. Thanks.
SUSHIL KUMAR BISWAS says:

SHE IS ONE OF MY GREATEST LOVE.
Francisco Javier Arias Burgos says:

One of my favorite writers ever. Her stories were mind challenging and full of charm.
Christine PENNEC says:

great
The King Of Love From IRAN says:

Thank you for sharing it with us,
Judit Bárkányi says:

Liked it a lot! Thanks for sending this activity!
Rose says:

Wonderful activity!
Amal Balasmeh says:

It is a wonderful story, especially attracting attention, when she was lost for 11 days and then found. Nevertheless, she continued to write novels that call for ambiguity. If I met her, I would ask her the following question. Why use ambiguity?
Dung Do Tien says:

Great practice
Ali says:

I liked this story. It’s very mysterious. I wonder if she tried to become one of the characters in her books and tried to disappear too?