Ellen Curtis

In the novel A Pocket Full of Rye, Ellen Curtis is a housemaid at Yewtree Lodge, the residence of Rex Fortescue and his family. She is described as being elderly, "very crabbed, and very cross". Mary Dove says that she is a first-class housemaid.

Ellen tells Inspector Neele that she should have given notice long before, because she does not like the language used in the house, the amount of drink that is taken, or the "goings on" there have been. She tells him that she saw Adele Fortescue and Vivian Dubois "kissing and canoodling" one day, when the library door was open.

Later in the novel, Ellen remembers that she had not brought in the clothes that were hanging on the line, and goes out with a torch to bring them in. She then discovers the body of Gladys Martin.

Portrayals
In the BBC 1985 adaptation of the novel which formed part of the Miss Marple series, the part of Ellen is played by Beau Daniels.