Ngaio Marsh House

The updated and improved musuem home of the late Dame Ngaio Marsh (1895-1982).

Marsh was an eminent producer of Shakepeare's plays and a world-renowned crime fiction writer, and played a significant role in Christchurch's cultural scene. An only child, Marsh was educated in Christchurch where she was overtly artistic, taking at once to theatre, painting, and writing. Upon her first (1928) trip to London she plunged into the theatre scene and took up interior design and travel writing. Her signature hero character 'Inspector Alleyn' was created in 1931, and continued to star in her books for decades, even taking a trip to New Zealand with her for 'war reasons'. Marsh's novels were very popular and her theatre exploits also well reviewed.

Ngaio Marsh's life in Christchurch involved her with of an extraordinary group of artists whose story is told by Peter Simpson. Her personal fascinating life story is told in a book by Joanne Drayton. Her crime novels remain popular, especially in the United States.

The house 'Marton Cottage' was designed by Hurst Seager and Marsh lived here for 76 years. It is a classic Christchurch bungalow on an impressive half acre hillside block, the special feature here being that the authors furnishings and belongings are still intact and still in place. Though she travelled extensively and set many of her novels in the United Kingdom, Marsh often said she felt blessed by her little patch of Cashmere. After her death the Ngaio Marsh Trust went to some trouble to secure the house and maintain it as a museum, but the Christchurch City Council eventually came to the financial rescue. Nevertheless it is still a shoestring, oily rag and volunteer operation, so the house can only be viewed by appointment for a small charge.

Marsh's father had planted a row of macrocapas and pines to shelter the house which eventually became hazardous and were removed in 2018. The trust also improved the roof, installed heating in the house and carried out exterior landscaping and maintenance in the hope of attracting more visitors. Marsh is buried at Mount Peel station, a mark of her friendship with Sir Hugh Acland and family. At the same time, a 'new' Marsh book was published, called 'Money in the Morgue'. This was an unfinished manuscript, completed by contemporary New Zealand Crime Writer Stella Duffy.