Agatha Christie’s last letter to PG Wodehouse

THE touching friendship between crime writer Agatha Christie and Jeeves creator PG Wodehouse formed in their twilight years can be revealed in correspondence published for the first time today.

And poignantly, in what proved to be her farewell letter dated January 14, 1975 – just a month before Wodehouse died aged 93 – she signed off: ‘Goodbye for now and thanks for all the laughs.’

In the letter, the author also reveals her secrets for longevity, saying: ‘One eats and drinks what one likes, – occasionally short periods resting in bed and reading one’s favourite books like those of PG Wodehouse.’

The letters are part of an archive of Wodehouse papers which have been loaned to the British Library by his estate. In one, the crime writer reveals her antipathy towards her public and their demands.

Writing on May 24, 1971, Christie says she welcomed how a postal strike had left her cut off from the outside world. It meant the absence of ‘fan mail… begging letters’ and ‘requests that you should send articles of personal wear (Disgusting idea!) to charity sales’. Wodehouse died in February 1975. Christie died aged 85 in January 1976.