All language subtitles for Travels.With.Agatha.Christie.and.Sir.David.Suchet.S01E05.1080p.WEB.H264-JAVLAR

♪♪

Suchet: In September 1922, a
young novelist, Agatha Christie,

journeyed up this hill
with her husband, Archie,

and other members of the British
Empire Exhibition mission.

They'd been invited
to visit this building.

The Dominion
Astrophysical Observatory.

Now, at the time of their visit,
this observatory was fairly new,

and their hosts were very keen
to make a good impression

on their visitors.

The country behind
this exciting venture

wanted to make a name for itself
on the international stage,

and that country was Canada.

For Agatha,
this observatory in Victoria

was the start of an epic
adventure that would take her

over 3,000 miles
from west to east.

Agatha had come to Canada
on the journey of a lifetime.

She was travelling
the world as part of a mission

that was championing
the upcoming

British Empire Exhibition.

Held in London in 1924,

the exhibition was
being designed to boost trade

and strengthen the bonds
between nations.

I've been re-creating
this journey

and following in
Agatha's footsteps.

So far, it's taken me
to Southern Africa...

Australia...

and New Zealand...
-Welcome.

-...and even on holiday
to Hawaii.

I'm David Suchet
and I played Agatha Christie's

famous character Hercule Poirot
for 25 years.

I want to explore the countries
Agatha visited in the 1920s...

There were 94,099 sheep shorn
the year that Agatha was here.

What?!

Suchet: ...and learn about
the legacy

of the British Empire today.

We are still black,
dispossessed,

displaced, and landless.

You can't understand
why things are the way

they are with
indigenous people in Canada

if you don't look at
what the history is.

And through seeing
what Agatha saw...

That is extraordinary.

...with my trusty camera
at my side,

I'll discover more
about the woman

whose work has played such
a pivotal part in my own career.

She embraced life for all
it was worth.

Wow, what a discovery!

♪♪

♪♪

On the 16th of September 1922,

Agatha and Archie
arrived in Canada,

a self-governing dominion of the
British Empire created in 1867.

They started in Victoria,

where the mission was shown
a technological marvel created

by this young nation.

Just four years before
Agatha's visit,

the Dominion
Astrophysical Observatory

had opened its doors.

Inside was the largest

and most important
telescope in the British Empire.

The Observatory's historian,
Dennis,

has offered to show me
what Agatha would have seen

when she came here in 1922.

-Oh, hi, David.
-Hello.

-Welcome to the observatory.
-Thank you very much.

Dennis, I've got to ask
you straightaway,

what would have been
its significance for a visit

by Agatha Christie
and the British Empire Mission?

In the early part
of the 20th century,

U.S., particular, was building
larger and larger telescopes,

and Canada,
feeling it wanted to become

a major player
on the world stage, said,

"We need a big telescope."

And so it was built
partly for national pride,

as well as for the science.

People came from
around the world to see it.

What was the telescope
actually doing

when Agatha Christie came
here in 1922?

Well, it was basically doing
what it did every clear night,

taking the spectrum of stars

and recording them
on photographic plates.

-Yes.
-I have here the logbook,

on astronomers keeping
track of what they're doing.

Suchet: Yes.

September 15th, 1922,

the night before
Agatha visited the telescope,

and they did a lot
of observing that night.

The next page is September 17th.

What happened to the 16th?

From the looks of it, clouds
came in late on September 15th.

I think the 16th was cloudy.

-That's when she was here.
-Yes.

-It was cloudy.
-That's life as an astronomer.

You end up with cloudy nights.

So she wouldn't have been
able to actually see anything?

Through the telescope,
I don't think so.

But you can observe the moon
through a fair bit of cloud,

so who knows?

She might have been
able to see something.

-I hope so.
-Well, I'd like to think so.

Yeah, I'd like to think so, too.
Yeah.

Suchet:
Fascinating.

♪♪

Suchet: Over a century after
Agatha's visit,

this observatory is
still operational.

Before night falls
and the telescope gets to work,

I have the opportunity
to see it up close.

Oh, my goodness!

-That's amazing!
-It's a wonderful machine.

Think how Agatha
would have viewed this in 1922.

I'm sure she would have had the
same reaction as I've just had.

Oh, I'm sure she did.

And is this
as she would have seen it?

What it looks like
and the scale of it

would be basically the same.

The difference, of course,
today is we have computers,

-which they didn't have in 1922.
-No.

The computers control
the motion of the telescope.

So, what the telescope can do
today is about 10,000 times

more sensitive
than the telescope was in 1922.

♪♪

♪♪

Wow!

Crabtree: The first thing is,
you have to

point the telescope at the star.

-You can see that gear moving.
-Yes.

And as we also point
the telescope,

the dome will have to be moved

so the telescope is looking out
through the shutter.

They're basically rail wheels
on a railway track.

-Oh, my God!
-And that big top turns around.

And you use it.

We use it every clear night
for science, yes.

Wow.

-This is really impressive.
-It's an impressive machine.

Even though it's 106 years old,
it's a very impressive machine.

Suchet: The telescope
was the brainchild

of the Canadian astronomer
John Stanley Plaskett,

who made public access
to the observatory

a priority from the start.

Crabtree: Plaskett said,

"The telescope will be open
for the public tours

on Saturday night and for every
Saturday night thereafter."

And we've been running
public tours almost consistently

during that time, running these
star parties Saturday night.

-You call it a star party?
-Yeah.

Have a party, come look at the
stars, enjoy the sky, you know?

How wonderful.

Do you have any idea
what day of the week

Agatha Christie visited?

Well, it turns out
she visited on a Saturday.

Saturdays are special
up here at the observatory.

♪♪

And just like Agatha,
I'm also here on a Saturday,

so I'm joining the star party
that is in full swing.

I'm looking at the Red Giant.

Gosh, it's rather
awe-inspiring, isn't it?

It really is.

Were there any major discoveries
as a result of this observatory?

Oh, yes, many a great
discoveries were made here.

In 1922, in fact,

Plaskett discovered
the most massive pair

of stars known up
until that time.

-Really?
-And it got to be known

very quickly as Plaskett's Star.

Plaskett won many international
awards for his work.

It was a demonstration
of Canada coming of age

as a modern country.

And it really made
the observatory famous

around the world and, of course,

it made Victoria, the city,
famous around the world.

Suchet: In 1922,

Canada was still forging
its own identity

and was keen to distinguish
itself from Britain.

And this meant many in Canada

were initially sceptical
of the Empire Exhibition.

The leader of the mission,
Major Belcher --

he really believed

that Canada needed
more encouragement

than other dominions as far
as the exhibition was concerned.

And I think, with a twinkle
in his eye and rather wickedly,

he sort of set up a competition

between other dominions
and Canada by using the media.

And in one newspaper,
he was quoted as saying,

"Australia is making a
magnificent response due largely

to their sense of vision

as to what the exhibition
will mean for the extension

of Australia's trade."

That's a good bit of publicity
to get Canada moving.

♪♪

♪♪

While in Victoria, Agatha and
Archie stayed at The Empress.

This impressive hotel, known as
"The Castle on the Coast,"

must have provided
some much-needed respite

after eight long months
of travelling.

But its opulence may
have made Agatha uneasy.

In Agatha's autobiography,

she tells us
that at this stage in the trip,

she and Archie
were running out of money.

And I find that
quite extraordinary, really.

You see, although Agatha's
sea fares were paid for,

she had no allowance.

Archie had £1,000 allowance
for the trip.

But by this stage,
they were really running low

and getting very worried.

But Agatha had a plan.

In a surprising passage
from her autobiography,

she recounts how she gorged
herself on the hotel breakfast.

"I had grapefruit
and sometimes pawpaw, as well.

I had buckwheat cakes,

waffles with maple syrup,
eggs, and bacon.

I came out feeling like
an overstuffed boa constrictor.

But I managed
to make it last until evening."

What's lovely about this
is that it shows a sense

of resourcefulness.

In all her writings,
she never complains.

Never. She recounts everything
with a certain light-heartedness

and wit, which shows a
wonderful, positive character.

A week after her arrival
in Canada,

Agatha left Victoria behind
and began an epic journey east.

I'm getting ready to do the same
on the Rocky Mountaineer,

a luxury train
that travels from Vancouver

to the mountain resort of Banff.

-Hello.
-Welcome, sir.

Suchet: Thank you very much.
Good morning, good morning.

Thank you.

Well, I've been on a couple
of red carpets in my life,

but never the red carpet
of the Rocky Mountaineer.

Woman #1: We are excited to
host you on board

the Rocky Mountaineer

as we make our way from
the beautiful city of Vancouver.

We have our crew waving us
off just on the right-hand side.

Woman #2:
Look -- there they are.

You certainly don't get
this send-off

leaving Paddington Station.

♪♪

♪♪

Back in the 1920s,

Canada's railway was
advertised to tourists

as the most efficient
and scenic way

to explore this vast country.

♪♪

Oh, we're slowing down.

Oh, wow!
That is extraordinary.

♪♪

I'm completely amazed at how
this whole rail was constructed.

What a feat.

Built in the 1880s,
this railway line played

a crucial role in
Canada's formation.

Our train manager Wendy
has worked on this route

for nearly 15 years.

The idea was to unite
both Eastern and Western Canada.

So our government
in Ottawa thought,

"We need to get
a rail line built."

British Columbia, at that point,
hadn't joined into the federacy,

so the rail line was the draw.

So once they heard
that they would get a rail line

built through British Columbia
joining the two coastlines,

they were willing to join
the country

and really is why we have
the Canada that we have today.

-I mean, how did they do it?

-They brought in a lot of
Irish workers, Chinese workers,

and they were the ones
who really helped

to finish that rail line.

Throughout Canada,
we are built off of immigration.

It really is kind of
that foundation.

I mean, it must
have been hugely dangerous.

Very much so. We see the terrain
we're travelling through.

They say, for every mile, there
is usually a loss of life --

-Every mile?
-Every mile of track being laid.

They were doing it
in what is considered

really impassable, rugged areas.

You've got mudslides, dynamite,
the weather, the terrain.

Suchet: It's estimated

that around 15,000
Chinese labourers worked

on this stretch of track
through British Columbia.

They were paid less
than other workers,

and hundreds lost their lives
during construction.

Once this section of track
was complete,

the Canadian Pacific Railway
in the West

could be connected to Canada's
rail network in the East.

The railways met
over 300 miles from Vancouver.

Our host Toni can show me where.

Okay, this is going to be
Craigellachie coming up.

Suchet:
Here we are.

What happened here was,
the last spike

of the Canadian Pacific Railway
was hammered in.

-So, just a spike like this.
-Oh, wow!

The first one that they tried
to hammer in actually bent

because it was done
by a politician rather than

an engineer because
he wanted the camera shot.

-So he tried to do it himself.
-Typical politician.

Absolutely. So it was bent.

But the second one went in,
and that was on --

in November, in 1885.

Suchet:
Wow!

♪♪

[ Train rattling, clanging ]

I just love the sound
of the train.

[ Brakes hiss ]

Ah! It's amazing!

♪♪

During the next stage
of this journey,

the train must traverse
the infamous Canadian Rockies,

a towering mountain range
with around 50 peaks

that surpass 11,000 feet.

I really can't believe
how massive these mountains are.

It really makes me feel
that small.

At the rugged
Kicking Horse Pass,

the highest point
in our journey,

trains must ascend
over 5,300 feet.

To gain this amount of
height safely,

two tunnels were built
through two immense mountains.

But this required
a unique design.

So, it was in 1907

that they began the building
of the Spiral Tunnels.

They started at the bottom
in the town of Field

-that we just passed by.
-Yes.

And they had
one team start there

and they had the other
team start at the very top

of Mount Cathedral.

And they worked for two years
to meet in the middle.

Kind of spiralling around.

Exactly.
Spiralling the entire way.

Webb: Here we go into
our first tunnel.

Suchet: Oh, this is --
Now we're in a spiral.

Webb: We are.
We are inside Mount Ogden.

-Ah.
-So, we're turning.

We really are
turning now on a --

We're turning 226 degrees.

We're turning left.

So when we come out of
this mountain,

everything that we saw
on the left-hand side

is now going to be
on the right-hand side.

-Suchet: Now we're out.
-Webb: So, we're out!

Suchet: The Spiral Tunnels
were completed in 1909

and allowed trains to make
this vast ascent gradually.

Really, really incredible.

This is the second mountain
here that

we're going to be making our way
through, Mount Cathedral.

Suchet: Yes.

I'm getting a wonderful sense

that you're quite excited
this time.

I am really excited,
to be honest.

-Is that right? Yes.
-Yeah.

♪♪

♪♪

-Wow! Look, here we are.
-We're all turned around.

Oh, my goodness me.
We have turned around.

The valley,
the Kicking Horse River.

Yes!

Everything is all
on the other side now.

♪♪

-A margarita.
-Man: Yes.

It seems obvious

that Canada's railways were an
important part of their story,

and I would say even
their identity and something

the country was very proud
of in the 1920s,

because they featured
very prominently

in the
British Empire Exhibition.

And I'm just looking at
the map here in the guidebook,

and either side of the Canadian
pavilion are two buildings,

one dedicated to C.P.R. --

that's the
Canadian Pacific Railway --

and the other one,
the CN Railway,

the Canadian National Railway.

Telling the story,
according to the guidebook,

of their marvellous conquest
of prairie and mountains.

It also seems clear

that they were keen
to advertise the ingenuity

and technical
achievements of the railways.

And also the potential
for tourism,

probably targeting the Brits
visiting the exhibition.

Yeah, but, you know,
look at the potential.

Stunning.

No wonder it's
on so many people's bucket list.

♪♪

Also near the top
of many a bucket list

is the train's destination,
Banff,

the highest town
in the Canadian Rockies.

One of the town's
key attractions

is the Banff Springs Hotel.

It was built in 1887
by the Canadian Pacific Railway

to attract tourists to the area

and it's one of the first
and most striking of Canada's

famous grand railway hotels.

These mountains are
so impressive.

And I'm about 4,500 feet
above sea level.

And I'm at Banff, staying
at the Banff Springs Hotel,

where Agatha stayed.

So I am once again following
in her footsteps.

With its towering mountains
and serene lakes,

it's no surprise
that Agatha said it was one

of the most beautiful places
she had ever seen.

And it continues
to attract thousands

of tourists to this day.

♪♪

Where the Rockies end,
the Prairies begin --

a valley of plains,
forest, and farmland

nearly 1,500 miles long.

Agatha came here because the
Empire Mission were following

in someone else's footsteps.

That someone was
the future Edward VIII.

He would become infamous
as the British king

who abdicated to marry
Wallis Simpson in the 1930s.

But in 1919,

he was still a young prince
touring the British Empire.

David, this is the view
that the prince would have seen.

Oh, sensational.

They say that he got up early
in the morning before breakfast

and he went for a long walk

and he walked the ridgeline
behind us here

and he saw the view.

And this is what
he fell in love with.

Suchet: The Prince of Wales
had come here to Alberta

and visited a ranch
called the Bar U.

He was so enamoured,

he decided to buy a ranch
for himself -- right next door.

Today, the ranch is owned
by Jennifer and her family.

It's pretty much identical
to what the prince

would have seen back in 1919.

And he was incredibly taken
with the Rocky Mountains

in the background,
the foothills,

and then Pekisko Creek,
the wooded meandering creek

that you see
that goes through the ranch.

Yes.

Historically, royals
do not buy personal property.

So, it's said
to be the only property

that was ever owned personally
by a member of the royal family.

So, if you look
straight at the end,

there's the Prince of Wales'
house.

It's the red house
with the white trim.

Suchet: Okay, yes.

Bartlett: That's the original
ranch house.

-Is it?
-Mm-hmm.

♪♪

What did he do when he was here?
Did he get involved?

I understand he was very active.

I understand he liked to take
part in anything

to do with the
cattle operation --

-The cattle?
-Yeah.

Did he become a cowboy?

Well, I think he played cowboy
when he was here.

-No!
-Yes.

And I think he just wanted to
sort of embrace the lifestyle.

One of the things
that everyone remembers

is that he would always refer to
"My fellow Albertans."

Oh, really?

It's as though he had assumed
that he was an Albertan himself

after purchasing the ranch.

Suchet: When the
Prince of Wales found out

that the Empire Mission
were visiting Canada,

he insisted they visit
his ranch.

And maybe Agatha was
able to experience a bit

of the ranching lifestyle
herself.

The prince certainly did.

In 1941, the prince came
with Wallis Simpson,

and they stayed
at the ranch house

and they were here
approximately a week.

-Was that her first visit?
-Her very first visit.

-Oh.
-And his last visit was in 1950.

And it as a very short visit.
It lasted two days.

Oh!

They arrived in April to one of
our infamous spring snowstorms.

So I think the weather became
a huge deterrent.

Suchet:
But back in 1924,

the ranch captured
the imagination of visitors

to the Empire Exhibition
in quite a surprising way.

I've got to show you
a photograph...

-Okay.
-...of...

that.

Do you know what that is?

-The prince.
-That is the prince.

Next to a horse
in front of the ranch house.

In front of the ranch house.

But let me tell you, the whole
thing is a butter sculpture.

Bartlett:
Butter? That's crazy.

Suchet:
This life-size sculpture,

made of 3,000 pounds of butter,

was one of the
most admired spectacles

in the entire exhibition.

Also, did you know that,
in the exhibition,

very prominently, was
also a photograph of your ranch?

I did not know that.

You have a very, very, very
special place here.

We love it.

♪♪

[ Whistles ]

Suchet: Well, I can quite see
why Edward loved it here.

And I'd like to think
that Agatha liked it, too.

And this particular ranch,
whether in photographic form

or even in the butter sculpture,

would have certainly been
a highlight

of the Canadian pavilion.

It's as if they
wanted to promote themselves

as a homestead, if you like,
for the British settlers.

And I can quite imagine that
some of the British visitors

to the Canadian Pavilion
may have wanted to have a taste

of the ranch lifestyle
themselves.

But, you know, there's something
also that I'm curious about.

In all my travels with Agatha
throughout Canada,

I've never heard any mention
of the indigenous people.

So that gets me to question
what Agatha didn't see.

♪♪

♪♪

I've come to see a place

that the Empire Mission
were not taken to visit.

This is St. Eugene.

The land here has been home
to the Ktunaxa people

for thousands of years.

Today, it's a beautiful resort,
but in the 1920s,

this building was
a residential school

for First Nations children.

Gordie's parents and
grandparents were sent here,

and he had to attend the school
himself when he was 5 years old.

Our dormitories on the top
floors in each of the corners.

Boys to that side
of the building,

girls to this side
of the building.

Boys' side, girls' side.

Gordie, can you
actually remember your

very first day here?

-I can't forget it.
-Really?

It was one of the worst days
of my life.

When I came to school
here in 1957,

my grandmother brought me here.

I came in horse and buggy.

When my grandmother
gets me here,

they go into the building what's
called the Indian Parlour.

We have to sit there
and wait for the priest to come.

You could hear
a nun shouting at our --

scolding a girl,
and the girl started crying.

So I start getting scared.

One of the things
that my grandmother tells me

before she leaves is, if I have
any problems, deal with it here.

Don't carry it on my shoulder.

-So she knew.
-She knew, yeah.

What sort of things
would the boys and girls

have had to endure?

Hardship, abuse, physical abuse,
sexual abuse, culture abuse.

We weren't allowed
to speak our language.

That was taken away from us.
You're punished for it.

You're either given a strap
or maybe you have to do

extra labour or something
or maybe even eat soap.

-Soap?
-Yeah.

That's one the punishments
was eating soap

for speaking your language.

Suchet: Residential schools were
run by Christian churches

with the financial support
of the Canadian government.

It's believed that more
than 150,000 indigenous children

were forcibly sent
to these schools

and that thousands died
while in their care.

They were a central part
of a wider effort

to suppress indigenous culture.

Sophie Pierre is an elder

and retired chief
of the Ktunaxa Nation.

The Minister of Indian Affairs
stood up in Parliament

and said that the purpose
of these schools

was to raise these children
to be adults

that no longer identify
as Indian.

It was really the intent of

wiping out who we are
as Ktunaxa,

removing us from the land,

so then it becomes
available for developing

and for everybody else.

A very effective way of doing
that is through the children.

And was this encouraged
by the government?

Oh, absolutely.
It's part of our law.

-Is it?
-It's still on the books.

-Re-- On the --
-Oh, sure. Yeah.

We still have something
in Canadian legislation

called the Indian Act.

Suchet: The Indian Act,
introduced in 1876,

placed legal restrictions on the
lives of indigenous Canadians

and led to the foundation of
the residential-school system.

By the 1920s,
when Agatha was in Canada,

oppressive amendments
had been made

which included compulsory
attendance at the schools

for children aged
between 7 and 15.

The majority of students
that came here would have

arrived speaking nothing
but Ktunaxa

and by the time they left would
be speaking nothing but English.

Some of these children, I mean,
they're 5, 6 years old,

and they start
to get punished from the time

they arrive because
they're not speaking English.

It's doesn't take much
to break down a child

and to affect them
for the rest of their lives

just by taking away
their language.

They can no longer communicate.
They're afraid to communicate.

But that was the purpose
of having these buildings.

Suchet: The St. Eugene Mission
School closed in 1970.

In the decades that followed,

a decision had to be made about
what to do with the building.

Sophie was chief at that time.

Pierre: Really what we had was a
big white elephant on our hands.

It's a huge building.

We still had our own people,
who were former students

that came here, that felt that
we should just tear it down.

That's not how you heal.

Just because something's
out of sight doesn't mean

that it's going to make
things better.

It was our elder, Mary Paul,

that really gave us
our directions on what to do,

because it was she who told us

that if we thought we had lost
so much in that building,

that we need to go back in there
and pick it up.

Suchet: The community decided to
turn the building into a resort

that also has
an interpretive centre.

It's here that
the traditions and culture

that historic governments tried
to eradicate

are now being championed.

Leanna is the director
of the centre.

We tell our
12,000-plus-year history,

as well as our
residential-school story.

And our guides are former
residential-school survivors

who tell their stories.

We have beading activities,
plant walks, tepee raising.

Yes.

Passing on that knowledge
to the next generations.

Suchet: A keystone of this work
is ensuring the language

that was so nearly taken
from the community endures.

If you weren't raised
in the language,

it is hard for some speakers
to come back to try

to learn it later when they're
in their adult years.

A lot of our people
today are learning.

Myself, I can read better
than I can speak.

I'm still considered
a baby speaker.

I have knowledge of
learned phrases and the animals,

how to count.

Leanna, you've been talking
so vividly about your language,

but I haven't heard it.

Will you talk to me
or say something to me in it?

That was wonderful.
Thank you so much.

It wasn't until the 1980s

that the truth about what
happened at residential schools

began to be publicly
acknowledged.

The last closed its doors
in 1996.

Pierre: You don't just move away
from intergenerational trauma.

You can't understand
why things are the way

they are with
indigenous people in Canada

if you don't look at
what the history is.

-That ain't gonna happen.
-No.

Not till we deal with the truth.

One of the ways
that we chose to deal with it

is to take back this building.

So that, for future generations,
it's a positive impact.

It is the thing that I am
most proud of, of our people,

that we made that decision
to do this.

It's been so interesting
talking to you.

"Interesting" is not the word.

I think you've been
amazingly honest with me,

and thank you
very, very much for sharing.

It's me that is indebted to you

for coming here to learn
about the truth,

because that's the only way
we can get it out.

-So thank you.
-Bless you. Thank you.

Suchet: Indigenous Canadians
weren't included in

the image of Canada
that was shown to Agatha

or to visitors
to the 1924 Empire Exhibition.

The exhibition
was used to display

an homogenous version of Canada

that would appeal
to a British audience.

To find out more,
I'm following Agatha

and the delegation to
the seat of government, Ottawa.

I'm going to
the National Gallery

to meet art historian Katerina

to find out
how Canada represented itself

at the exhibition through art.

Atanassova: This is "September
Gale" by Arthur Lismer.

Suchet:
Look at that!

As the artist said himself, this
picture is all about movement.

And he called it
as the symphony of nature.

We do have in the collection

another work
by Frederick Varley.

And he painted a
very similar subject,

probably even the same tree,
from the same locations.

Suchet:
Oh, how interesting.

Atanassova: And it was called
"Stormy Weather, Georgian Bay."

Suchet:
"Stormy Weather."

These paintings were included
in a selection

of artworks chosen
to represent Canada

in the Palace of the Arts
at the Empire Exhibition.

Their artists were members
of The Group of Seven.

The Group of Seven were a young
generation of painters in Canada

who believed that they
can represent the uniqueness

of the landscape and the country

and forward Canadian art
into a modern direction

by painting nature.

So you can immediately see
that influence

on the atmospheric effects

and that response of
how nature makes you feel

as opposed to what you see.

What's fascinating

also is just having
a look at just these landscapes.

It's similar to my experiences
on this tour through Canada.

Now I'm looking at
a reflection of those.

Yes.

Probably similar
to Agatha's tour, as well.

She would have recognised
the landscape of Canada.

Precisely.

And how is that
distinctly Canadian?

I think the whole idea is to say

that the artists were
not just painters,

but they were woodsmen,
they were outdoors,

they were communing with nature.

Suchet:
The Group of Seven wanted

their art to be seen as distinct
to that of Britain and Europe.

This aligned with the way
that Canada wanted to

be represented
across the exhibition.

Oh, you've got
the real catalogue there.

We have the real catalogue.

The foreword was written by
our first director, Eric Brown.

He says, "Canada is having the
opportunity of measuring her art

for the first time against that
of the other British dominions

at the
British Empire Exhibition.

Canada will show that
she possesses vigorous school

of painting and sculpture,

moulded by the
tremendously intense character

of her country and colour
of her seasons."

Oh, that's so interesting.

Well, you know, this says
to me Canada is distinctive.

"We possess a style of our own.

We're not European.
We are Canadian."

And that is precisely what
they wanted to achieve.

Suchet: Their inclusion
in the exhibition

gave the Group of Seven
exposure outside of Canada.

And their work was
seen to represent Canada gaining

a national voice of its own.

The scenery,
with simplification of form,

with boldness and colours
and expressiveness,

and that's what delighted and
fascinated the British critics.

Exactly that representation
of the Canadian landscape.

One of the leading critics
at the time --

he writes in The Daily Chronicle
and he says,

"The Canadian landscapes,
I think,

are the most vital group
of paintings produced

since the war,
indeed, this century."

My goodness.

So he's giving
a very high credit.

Very high. This was was exactly
what Canada wanted,

a uniqueness, but a union.

-And a recognition.
-Yes.

International recognition
and an idea

that Canada's close
to the parent,

to the imperial centre,
yet distinct and independent.

And yet distinctive.

There's a lot of politics
going on in here, isn't there?

I'm seeing Canada represented in
a very particular, unique way.

Yes.

Suchet: Amongst the mission's
meetings with Canada's

governing officials,

Agatha managed to carve
out some leisure time,

coming here
to the Royal Ottawa Golf Club.

While enjoying a few rounds,

Agatha must have been thinking
of an imminent milestone

in her career, the publication
of her next novel.

Agatha's third novel

to be published was
"Murder on the Links,"

in which
a body is discovered on the edge

of a golf course in France.

This was only her
second full-length Poirot novel,

and so beautifully had she drawn
the character of Poirot

in her first novel

that her readers would
not have been surprised

to learn the Poirot
did not like golf.

But the reason?

Because the bunkers were
not symmetrical.

But even though Agatha had
finished the book by the time

she was golfing in Ottawa,

she would have to wait
a few months to see if

"Murder on the Links"
would be a success.

In the
Times Literary Supplement,

the reviewer compared Poirot
to Sherlock Holmes

and wrote that

"The novel provides the reader
with an enthralling mystery

of an unusual kind."

The Daily Express --
"'Murder on the Links'

is one of the best
mystery stories I have read.

Miss Agatha Christie stands
in a class by herself

as a writer
of detective stories."

We have to remember, at the
beginning of the Empire Tour,

she'd only published one novel,
and that was as an amateur.

She did it as a dare.

But maybe she was now thinking

that writing could be
her chosen career

and maybe she could earn
a good living at it.

Well, I personally would like
to think

that she was now ready
to mount the dais

and sit on the throne
as the queen of crime.

After a truly epic journey
and 11 months of travelling,

it was time
for Agatha to return home

and resume her writing
in earnest.

She finally arrived back in the
UK on the 1st of December 1922.

Over a year later,
Agatha and Archie

must have been fascinated
to see the culmination

of their endeavours

when the British Empire
Exhibition opened in 1924.

The 216-acre site attracted

27 million people
over two years.

Amongst the highlights
heralded in the British press

were the elaborate
Dominion Pavilions,

the vast amusement park, and
the life-size butter sculpture

of the Prince of Wales.

Perhaps the exhibition's

most lasting legacy was the
twin-towered Wembley Stadium,

a London icon until 2003.

But the exhibition was deemed
to be a financial failure

and was reported
to have lost £1.5 million.

And although it was popular
with audiences at home,

it didn't have the international
impact many had hoped for.

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Here at Greenway, a house that
Agatha adored in later life,

the souvenirs that she collected
during her Empire Tour

can still be found.

But being part of the Empire
Mission would have another,

rather more unexpected impact
on Agatha's life.

It was through
the Empire Mission's leader,

Major Ernest Belcher,

that Archie was introduced
to Nancy Neele.

They fell in love with
each other to such an extent

that Archie asked Agatha
to grant him a divorce in 1926.

I would imagine that,
after all this,

her memories of the Empire Tour
would have been bittersweet.

And, yet,
she still kept these mementos.

I find that very touching.

♪♪

It was another love
in Agatha's life

that saved her --
her writing.

She became
a prolific professional,

and the 1930s and '40s
bore witness...

Here it is.

...to some of her best work.

Now, there's a Poirot quote from
this book, "Evil Under The Sun,"

which is a travel-themed book
set on an island.

And I can't help but think

that Agatha Christie
is speaking through the mouth

of Hercule Poirot.

He is actually talking to
a very successful businesswoman.

"To marry and have children --
that is the common lot of women.

Only one woman in a
hundred, more in a thousand,

can make for herself a name and
the position as you have done."

And I can't help but think,
you know,

that Agatha is writing with
a sense of her own achievement,

that she may be one of those
very few women in a thousand

and knowing
how hard it had been.

And maybe she was writing
with a little sense of pride,

knowing what she had achieved.

And I wonder
how she'd feel knowing

that today,
all those years later,

she remains in a class
all by herself.

It feels right to end
my journey here at Greenway,

because this house was
so special to Agatha

and because it was here that I
said goodbye to Hercule Poirot.

Through getting to know
Agatha so much better

at a time when
she was developing

this beloved character,

I feel even closer to him
than I was before.

You know, the final shot of me
playing Poirot

was taken when I was standing
on this very step,

and when I heard the words
"That's a wrap,"

I thought I would be saying
goodbye to him forever.

So to be able to
spend time with him

again on this Empire Tour,
well, it's been a real joy.

♪♪

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