Timeline
 The refurbished Babbacombe Theatre is renowned for wowing audiences with their highly acclaimed variety shows. It has been a valuable asset to the town for over seventy years, most especially since 1986 when Matthews Productions took over the venue. |
 
Agatha Christie has had 79 crime novels, 19 plays and 6 romantic novels under the pseudonym Mary Westmacott published. Described by the Guinness Book of Records as the best-selling writer of books of all time she published one billion books in the English language and a further one billion in 43 other languages. Born in Torquay on the 15th September 1890 at Barton Road, she played as a child, worked and socialised here as a young lady and is known to have used references in her books that are relative to the region, including Kent’s Cavern, Meadfoot Beach and the Paignton & Dartmouth Steam Railway being the inspiration for some of her locations. |
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2021 |
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More than £300 million has been awarded to thousands of cultural organisations across the country including the Babbacombe Theatre, Torquay. It was awarded in April 2021 in the last round of support from the Culture Recovery Fund. This award will help us to look ahead to the future and it enabled the venue to reopen in May 2021. After months of closures and cancellations to contain the virus and save lives, this funding is much needed and whilst it will not compensate for the losses that have been incurred during lockdown it should ensure the future of the theatre. Colin Matthews, owner & managing director is delighted to have been granted the award having not been successful during the first round and he was beginning to fear for the future of the theatre. He is grateful to the government’s #CultureRecoveryFund so that he can continue to be around to ENTERTAIN Devon audiences and be #HereForCulture throughout 2021, his 35th anniversary season, 2022 and beyond! To everyone that has supported the Babbacombe Theatre so far since the closure in 2020 the management team, staff and casts associated with the venue pass on their heartfelt thanks to every single supporter - if you had not been there with your generous donations then the theatre would not be here for you all now! THANK YOU @DCMS & #HEREFORCULTURE |
Building on a legacy dating back to the first event in 1990, the International Agatha Christie Festival is widely recognised as the premier cultural event on the English Riviera. Bringing together local people and Christie fans from around the world. The festival celebrates Christie’s life and legacy, and includes high profile speakers, performances of her plays and poetry and unique events. THIS YEARS FETIVAL IS BEING STAGED IN TORQUAY from Saturday 11th September – Saturday 18th September The Festival Programme is available via this link https://www.iacf-uk.org/festival/ Festival Tickets: Tickets are now on sale at www.ticketsource.co.uk/agathafestival 2021 speakers include award-winning novelists Anthony Horowitz and Kate Mosse. |
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2019 |
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2019 marks a special anniversary for the venue. 80 YEARS ENTERTAINING YOU! The very first concert here was on the afternoon of 27th May 1939 with the Earnest Gross Municipal Orchestra and BBC Baritone John Steabben, followed that evening by the opening night of the first summer show, Cabaret Revels with tickets at 3/-, 2/- and 6d. The first Sunday concert on 4th June was broadcast live on the radio with Redvers Llewellyn. The Concert Hall was officially opened in brilliant sunshine by the Mayor (Councillor C.G. Price), attended by members of the Torquay Corporation Entertainments Committee & St. Marychurch & Babbacombe representatives of the Town council. The ratepayers of Torquay, at a cost of £8,000, funded the building project. A special anniversary should be celebrated, in epic proportion, and with this seasons programme of events, we promise to deliver just that! |
Join the ‘Read Christie 2019’ challenge: where each month fans of the celebrated Devon author are invited to read a book and join the participants on their progress with #ReadChristie2019 on twitter. Did you know you can trace the eventful life of Agatha Christie – her life, her novels and her plays in a dedicated exhibition at the Torquay Museum? |
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2016 |
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What a year 2016 is turning out to be. Not only is it Colin Matthews 30th year at the venue, but the theatre is now ranked as the number 1 theatre on TripAdvisor in Devon and both productions have been rated with 5 star shows. To read an interview with Colin about his 30 years at the venue as printed in the Herald Express in March, please CLICK HERE |
In recognition of the International Agatha Christie Festival’s mission to continue the memory of the world’s best-selling crime novelist, the Torbay based festival has been granted charitable status. Having charitable status will allow the festival to expand on its arts, cultural, educational and heritage activities linked to Agatha Christie’s work and interests. From 2017 the festival will be a two-yearly event which will give more time to develop an outstanding programme for each festival. On alternate years the festival will be complimented with an Agatha Christie Day on Agatha Christie’s Birthday – 15th September – starting this year. A special event is being planned for the first Agatha Christie Day this September. In this year Agatha Christie’s Autobiography is also re-released in Hardback |
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2014 |
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 For the third consecutive year the venue is awared the Certificate of Excellence from TripAdvisor and stil maintains the number one position amongst the 36 Attractions within Torquay on the review site. |
 This years Agatha Christie Festival is on from Sunday 14th to Sunday 21st September and for the first time is based at Torquay’s Torre Abbey.Many top crime writers and screen writers are participating which will make this event a Festival Of Literacy |
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| 2013 | |||
 The venue goes from number 2 to number 1 early in the year on the TripAdvisor Torquay Attractions page, due to some lovely reviews for both Spellbound & West End Encore! Help maintain the top slot by adding your review of your visitor experience to the Babbacombe Theatre in 2013. |
Round every corner there is a murder mystery: on steam trains, in spooky country inns, and in rambling seaside pubs. You'll also find competitions, book launches and other exclusive events as well as Poirot on-hand should there be a case or two to solve. |
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| 2011 | |||
2011 began and ended on a high note! Matpro Limited, the company that owns the venue celebrated its 25th anniversary whilst also enjoying producing its 50th production, Heatwave'. The show was awarded 5 star reviews, which marked the milestone in the theatres history quite fittingly. Step Into Christmas became the most successful Christmas show in the history of Matpro and Colin Matthews threw a big party at the Spanish Barn to ensure all involved with the success of the theatre had a day to remember. (Read J.P Hedges, Herald Express review of the afternoons antics) Colin, Pete Leonard the Musical Director and resident Choreographer, Georgia Lee are seen captured together in a commemorative photograph. |
The English Riviera's Tourism Company release a promotional DVD highlighting her links with Torquay and the surrounding area. | ||
| 2009 | |||
 This year the theatre celebrated its 70th anniversary and to mark the occasion the theatre auditorium was refurbished. There was also a fabulous 4-page supplement in the local paper, the Herald Express on Friday 3rd July, with an additional double page spread celebrating the achievements of Colin Matthews. The show this year was Alive With Laughter starring Tank Sherman, Torbay’s Got Talent was in its third season with the amazing Holly Cosgrove coming out as the very worthy winner, Des O’Connor appeared on his UK tour in November and the hugely successful Christmas Cracker ensured that 2009 went out on high! |
 Christie goes digital with two of her novels used as the inspiration for video games one for the DS, The ABC Murders and Dead Man's Folly created as an I-Spy hidden-object game available for the PC. |
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| 2007 | |||
 Colin celebrates his 21st Anniversary at the helm by holding a big bash at the fabulous historical landmark, Oldway Mansion, the family home of the Singer family. Fun and laughter was had by all… well almost, Sharon Waring, the General Manager was sunning herself on a Mediterranean cruise, that left Marie Garlick, the Theatre Manager and Anthony Whitehurst, the Stage Manager to organise the speech and ceremonial gift presentation. Also in this year, the show Strictly Comedy and Dancing welcomed a new headlining act Tank Sherman, who went onto to star for 3 consecutive summer seasons and for 3 Christmas shows all of which received much critical acclaim |
 Published by Headline Review and written by Laura Thompson, the biography ‘Agatha Christie - An English Murder’ is released.Click here to see The Observers review, written by Rachel Cooke. |
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| 1986 | |||
Matthews Productions (Matpro Limited), take over the venue. Managing Director Colin Matthews has produced and directed variety, comedy and musical shows throughout the South of England at theatres in Torquay, Newquay, Sandown, Eastbourne, Poole and Bournemouth. He has also promoted concerts and bands covering all genres including pop, rock, big band and classical orchestral at numerous venues nationally. Colin has devised and directed all of the highly acclaimed shows at both the Babbacombe Theatre since 1986 as well as the Royal hippodrome Theatre in Eastbourne since 1991 as well as successful seasons at the Pier Theatre in Bournemouth in recent years. Having in the past worked with some of the biggest names in the world of entertainment, Colin now actively seeks out new and versatile performers for his productions which, together with his youth policy, has resulted in the discovery and development of young talent with success nationally and in the West End for many performers that have appeared in his shows. |
During this year three movies were aired, Dead Man’s Folly, Murder in Three Acts and Murder at the Vicarage, the latter being its first movie adaptation for the screen. A VHS murder mystery game, called Behind the Screen was released. The players had to try and solve the case of who killed Tyler Dudden. This game has more than 250 different endings so you will never play the same game twice. The short story "Behind the Screen" was not actually written just by Agatha Christie herself - it was collaboration by the London Detection Club; another author who contributed was Dorothy L. Sayers. It was published with another story called "The Scoop" in the 1980s, but both were originally presented as radio plays in the 1930s. Peggy Ashcroft starred in a TV play, playing Christie, called Murder By The Book. Very simply, this is an obviously fictional tale about what happened the night Hercule Poirot paid a visit to Dame Agatha Christie and accused her of murder…. And Hercule Poirot is the victim. |
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| 1956 | |||
Bruce Forsyth appears in Gaytime for a summer season. It was whilst he was here he was discovered and went on to perform at Saturday Night at the London Palladium. Whilst he was here, it is reported that the staff thought he was too thin and so tried to fatten him up by feeding his Cream Teas and pasties! Since the war the theatre has seen many years of successful summer shows and it has the reputation of hosting household names on the threshold of their careers, including in. Other well-known names include David Nixon, Ted Rogers, Ray Allen, Norman Vaughan and Roy Hudd. |
 Christie won the Commander of the Order of the British Empire decoration in this year for being the most popular British crime mystery writer. |
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| 1952 | |||
| This was the 2nd season the legendary impresario Hedley Claxton bought his show ‘Gaytime’ to the venue. His productions ran for eight years with no well-known artistes reported at the time. Gordon Peters headlined in this year and he was supported by Barry Craine. It is worth noting that the artistes at the time were little known but many went on to become household names. |  On the 25th November The Mousetrap opened in London's West end and continues to this day. |
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| 1947 | |||
| The talented Torbay Operatic and Dramatic Society known as TOADS used to present a programme of plays through the winter season, which came to an end in 1991 Christie loved to write for the radio, perhaps her most famous radio work was written in 1947 when she was asked by the BBC to write an half hour play to celebrate Queen Mary’s 80th birthday, she delivered with, Three Blind Mice, this would later become The Mousetrap! |  Also in this year the remake of Love From a Stranger was released as a film, it was reported not to be as good as the original which had been released in 1937. The plot, typical of Christie tells of an impressionable sweepstakes winner Cecily Harrington Falling under the romantic spell of charismatic Manuel Cortez, she marries him after a whirlwind courtship. It doesn't take long for Cecily to figure out that Cortez is a dangerous psychotic, bent on murdering his wife and claiming her fortune. Unable to convince anyone else of Cortez intentions (even though his behaviour would, in real life, get him locked away in a minute), Cecily determines to outsmart her husband and catch him in his own trap. |
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| 1939 - 1945 | |||
 The first concert was on the afternoon of Saturday 27th May with the Earnest Gross Municipal Orchestra and BBC Baritone John Steabben, followed that evening by the opening night of the first summer show, Cabaret Revels with tickets at 3/- and 2/6.The first Sunday concert on 4th June was broadcast live on the radio with Redvers Llewellyn followed the next Sunday by the great Richard Tauber with tickets for the concert priced at 10/6d, 7/6d. 3/6d and 2/6d. With the advent of World War II the auditorium became a lecture hall for the aircrew trainees of the RAF, although during this period there were various shows including those by ENSA and the RAF Flying Training Command Band.
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| 1938 | |||
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 Agatha bought Greenway, a beautiful house overlooking the River Dart at Galmpton near Brixham. Initially she and her husband, Max, used the house as a holiday home. The Greenway estate dates back to the late 1400’s when among the first owners were the Gilbert family, favourites of Elizabeth 1, who occupied an earlier version of the house for over 200 years.Christie passed Greenway to her family and they in turn gave it to the National Trust. Greenway opened its doors and gardens to the public in August 2009. |
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| 1935 | |||
 A larger structure with a canvas awning was erected on the current site of the theatre, after the original bandstand was demolished. However, the weather also did its worst and so the local authority looked at building a more permanent structure. |
 Collins Crime club publishes A Three Act Tragedy in January of this year. This was her first book to sell over 10.000 copies in a year and it retailed for 7/6d. |
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| 1920 | |||
 A small bandstand was built on the downs after a licence was granted by the council for Bands to perform on the Downs some years previously. |
 She produced her first novel, introducing Hercule Poirot, in 1920 in 'The Mysterious Affair at Styles', although she actually wrote it during the war years of 1914-1918, it took some time to get it published, it was published in the USA in 1920 and a few months later in the UK. Coincidentally in Torquay! |
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Each year, the English Riviera transforms itself into the murder mystery capital of the country, with ladies and gents in their period finery immersing themselves in tea parties, theatre, dinners on steam trains and vintage bus tours. Why? For the annual award-winning Agatha Christie Festival in honour of the Queen of Crime.
With the advent of World War II the auditorium became a lecture hall for the aircrew trainees of the RAF, although during this period there were various shows including those by ENSA and the RAF Flying Training Command Band.
The Babbacombe Theatre wishes to thank and acknowledge the assistance received in compiling this page, most especially local historian, Terry Leaman. He provided us with the limited edition Volume II Pictorial & Historical Survey of Babbacombe & St Marychurch, where we have been able to take copies to display here.
