Miss Marple Morton adapted the novel for the stage, he replaced the character of Caroline with a young girl. This change saddened Christie and she determined to give old maids a voice: Miss Marple was born. Christie may have taken the name from Marple railway station, through which she passed, or from Marple Hall, near her sister Madge's home at Abney Hall. The character of Jane Marple in the first Miss Marple book, "The Murder at the Vicarage", is markedly different from how she appears in later books. This early version of Miss Marple is a gleeful gossip and not an especially
Agatha Christie vision and to protect the integrity of her creations" and disapproved of "merchandising" activities. Upon Hicks's death on 28 October 2004, both the Society and the Greenway Estate passed to Christie's grandson, Mathew Prichard. After his parents' deaths, Prichard donated Greenway and its contents to the National Trust. The Society is now chaired and managed by Agatha Christie's great-grandson James Prichard. Christie's family and family trusts, including James Prichard, continue to own the remaining 36% stake in Agatha Christie Limited, and remain associated with the company. James Prichard became the company's chairman in October 2015. The development of Christie's work