Category Archives: Locations

Clara on Location: Spanish City, Whitley Bay

Join Fiona as she takes you to various locations for the setting of the Miss Clara Vale Mysteries – while wearing vintage style clothing she made herself from original 1920s patterns. In this video she visits the Spanish City in Whitley Bay, near Newcastle upon Tyne, which is the location of the picture house that burns down with such tragic consequences in The Picture House Murders. You can read about how Fiona made her fabulous outfit here.

Clara on location at the Royal Station Hotel

Join Fiona as she takes you to various locations for the setting of the Miss Clara Vale Mysteries – while wearing vintage style clothing she made herself from original 1920s patterns. In this second video she visits the Royal Station Hotel in Newcastle upon Tyne, where Clara sets a honey trap for one of the main suspects in The Picture House Murders. You can read about how Fiona made her fabulous outfit here.

Clara’s Newcastle

As part of Fiona’s writing process, before she start writing a new book she looks for an original map from as close to the period in which she is writing as possible. It helps her to visualise the location and to be aware of the historical differences of locations from what they are now. She found this fabulous map in Reid’s Newcastle City Guide (1928). See below the main locations of The Picture House Murders and follow Clara as she solves the case.

Map of locations for The Picture House Murders by Fiona Veitch Smith

Clara on location at Exhibition Park

Join Fiona as she takes you to various locations for the setting of the Miss Clara Vale Mysteries – while wearing vintage style clothing she made herself from original 1920s patterns. In this first video she visits Exhibition Park in Newcastle upon Tyne, the location of the Great North East Coast Exhibition in 1929. You can read about how Fiona made her fabulous outfit here.