Agatha Christie inspiration hotel taken off market

An island and hotel with links to Agatha Christie, which was put on the market for £15m has been withdrawn from sale.

The move comes "despite receiving attractive offers" for Burgh Island, where Christie based two of her novels, owner Giles Fuchs said.

The island, off Bigbury-on-Sea in south Devon, comes with a Grade II-listed white art deco hotel where the thriller writer stayed.

Mr Fuchs said refurbishment of the hotel would now be accelerated thanks to a £5.4m refinancing and additional funding package.

The tidal island, which is accessible by a sea tractor at high tides, was sold in 2018 for about £8.4m.

Mr Fuchs said he was "delighted" to be "continuing as the owner of Burgh Island".

"We had lots of interest and we settled on a buyer, but when we got to exchange that buyer decide not to buy it," he told BBC Radio Devon.

He said the move was a "benefit" as his sister Niki had stepped down from her role at their London business and "would have more time" to manage the hotel with him.

The refinancing agreed with Metro Bank would "accelerate the improvements" and "continue the journey to make it fit for the next 100 years", he said.

"I'm very excited."

According to the island website, the location inspired the setting for the Agatha Christie novels 'And Then There Were None' and the Hercule Poirot mystery 'Evil Under the Sun'.

The 2002 TV adaptation of Evil Under The Sun used the island as a filming location and the hotel was visited by playwright Noel Coward in the 1930s.

Several scenes from the BBC's 1987 dramatisation of Christie's story Nemesis were also filmed in the hotel.

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