Legendary crime author returns in virtual form to share her writing secrets with a new generation
Aspiring writers are being handed a rare opportunity to learn the craft of crime fiction from none other than Dame Agatha Christie herself — albeit with the aid of cutting-edge artificial intelligence. The BBC has teamed up with the late author’s estate to launch Agatha Christie Writing, a new online course designed to pass on her insights, voice and creative philosophy, using AI-enhanced technology.
Though Christie passed away in 1976 at the age of 85, her words and wisdom are being brought to life through a collaboration involving BBC Maestro, BBC Studios, and a team of specialists from the Christie estate. The course combines restored audio, sophisticated visual effects, and voice performance by actress Vivien Keen to recreate the experience of being taught directly by the Queen of Crime.
“This has been a dream project for me,” said Michael Levine, chief executive of BBC Maestro, which develops online learning experiences with leading figures from the arts and culture. “As a lifelong fan of Agatha Christie, bringing this course to life has been a dream come true, and I am immensely proud of it. Fans will be able to learn, in her own words, exactly how she did it — her process, her inspirations, and the lessons she learned along the way.”
The digital reincarnation is part of a growing trend in which AI and digital media are used to preserve, enhance, and present historical figures to modern audiences. The course is set to explore various aspects of Christie’s writing approach, from crafting a cast of memorable characters and building suspense, to devising plot twists, planting red herrings, and constructing satisfying endings.
The content has been developed with the help of academics and literary researchers who meticulously pored over Christie’s archives, including published works, notebooks, and rare interviews. This deep dive into her creative mind enabled the course designers to reconstruct her perspective on storytelling in a way that is both authentic and engaging.
James Prichard, Christie’s great-grandson and chairman of Agatha Christie Limited, praised the project’s academic depth and accuracy. “The team of researchers and academics that BBC Maestro has assembled have done a remarkable job,” he said. “They have extracted from a number of her writings an extraordinary array of her views and opinions on how to write.”
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Agatha Christie remains one of the most successful writers in literary history. Her works — including 66 detective novels and 14 short story collections — have sold over 2 billion copies worldwide, second only to the Bible and Shakespeare. Her iconic characters, such as Hercule Poirot and Miss Marple, have become cornerstones of the detective fiction genre.
Christie’s stage play The Mousetrap continues to run in London’s West End, having first opened in 1952. Apart from a pause during the COVID-19 pandemic, it is the longest continuously running play in the world.
Despite her death nearly 50 years ago, Christie’s stories remain a staple of television, film, and radio adaptations, with audiences still drawn to the elegant puzzles, moral complexity, and ingenious plots she so masterfully devised.
The new writing course aims to inspire the next generation of storytellers while paying homage to one of Britain’s greatest literary minds. With AI giving her a renewed voice, Dame Agatha’s legacy looks set to extend even further — not only entertaining readers but now guiding future authors, clue by clue, through the art of crafting a timeless mystery.
