In the novel N or M?, Leahampton is a town on the English south coast and the centre of most of the action in the plot and a large part of them take place in the Sans Souci hotel which is located there.
In other works[]
In the novel Sleeping Murder, Hillside is located on the Leahampton road.
Inspiration[]
Some internet resources and also Christie researcher Caroline Crampton posit that Leahampton is based on Bournemouth and that the pier where Tommy met Mr Grant is inspired by the old pier (Boscombe Pier) at Bournemouth.[1] The pier certainly matches the pier in the book but the features of Leahampton are different from Bournemouth. Leahampton is a small quiet seaside town with few facilities and which was therefore suitable as a base for espionage and for landing troops and agents. By contrast, Bournemouth is a large and busy seaside resort with many hotels and facilities. The kind of espionage activities envisaged in the book would not have been so practical there. Also, the text states that "Leahampton is on the south coast—a budding Bournemouth or Torquay...." suggesting that Leahampton is distinct from these other two seaside resorts.
Other researchers such as Bruce Prendergast posit that Leahampton is on the north (by that he means the northeast) coast of England. This is based on the fact that Tommy left by train for Aberdeen, then the next day took a train to Manchester and on the third day a train to Leahampton. In the same way, when Tuppence is summoned, she is called to Yarrow, which is a town on the England/Scotland border.[2] However in both cases, these are most likely tactics of deception. In the first case, by Tommy, to conceal from Tuppence his final destination, and in the second, by the enemy for the same reason. As noted above, the text is explicit in stating that Leahampton in on the south coast.
Places in Leahampton[]
- Smiths - newsagent
- Post office
- A pier
- Sans Souci
- Smugglers' Rest
- Bella Vista
- Edenholme
- Karachi
- Shirley Tower
- Sea View
- Castle Clare
- Trelawny - a rival hotel to the Sans Souci
Trivia[]
Author Dorothy L. Sayers used a fictional town named Leahampton in her 1927 novel Unnatural Death.
References[]
- ↑ Caroline Crampton, Agatha Christie's England: A Map and Guide, (Herb Lester Associates, 2021).
- ↑ Bruce Pendergast, Everyman's Guide to the Mysteries of Agatha Christie, (Victoria: Trafford, 2004), 151.