Agatha Christie and the mystery of the buried cables

Big statue reveal postponed after paving puzzle

Plans to celebrate the life of Torquay’s world famous Queen of Crime aren’t so much a ‘whodunnit’ as a ‘when’?

A newly-commissioned statue of Dame Agatha Christie and her beloved terrier Peter will be the centrepiece of a £4million new harbourside plaza.

But plans to open the new area and unveil the statue have been put on hold until next year after contractors discovered unexpected pipes and cables in the way.

The big reveal had been due to take place during next month's International Agatha Christie Festival.

But now a special mini-festival will be staged next spring, and the new statue will be unveiled as part of that instead.

Torbay Council said the harbourside plaza had to be re-designed after excavations unearthed pipes and cables which were not where they were expected to be..

Local councillor Swithin Long (Barton with Watcombe), leader of the Liberal Democrat opposition at the town hall, said the news is ‘disappointing’. And, he added: “It’s all a bit of a mystery.

“It’s such a shame that there can’t be a solution to this. If it does miss the festival it’s a crying shame, because it’s an event that is getting more and more successful every year.”

The statue has been created by local artist Elisabeth Hadley, who also made the Man And Boy statue on Brixham harbour.

It is part of a transformation of the harbourside in which the Strand will become a wide pedestrian boulevard, with buses banished and traffic squeezed into a single carriageway rather than the existing double.

Temporary lights have been controlling traffic through the busy area during the works, which was due to have reached the ‘final surfacing and finishing works’ stage by now.

But the project will now continue until later in the year, with Dame Agatha's statue's unveiling being put off until next year.

In a statement the council said: “We have postponed the installation and official unveiling of the Agatha Christie statue until the spring of 2025. This will align with our official opening of the new-look harbourside which we are planning a programme of events for.

“The unveiling will also coincide with a mini–Agatha Christie Festival that the International Agatha Christie Festival is looking to host.  

“The programme of construction works has been slightly extended due to redesign work that needed to take place after essential utilities were identified in an area that was originally marked up for underground tree pits.

“The project will be completed by late autumn / early winter of 2024.”

The International Agatha Christie Festival runs from Saturday 7 to Sunday 15 September with events including plays, film shows, talks, walks and a sea swim.