In the Agatha Christie book Nemesis, Miss Marple is offered a milky drink at bedtime by Clotilde Bradbury-Scott, whilst Miss Marple was staying as a guest in her home. She declined to drink it- and good thing- it was poisoned!
In my own country, a hot drink at bedtime is usually hot chocolate. If Miss Marple had been offered hot chocolate, I believe it would have said so. So I did a little research and found a hot milk-based drink in the UK called Horlick’s. It is similar to Ovaltine in the US, but without chocolate- it is a hot malted milk beverage.
I purchased a tin of Horlick’s and found that I really liked it. I suffer from insomnia if I partake of caffeine late in the day, and I found it to be a nice substitute for cocoa.
Living Miss Marple 
Thank you for your investigative journalism into all things Miss Marple. I haven’t read Agatha Christie’s books but I’m smitten with Joan Hickson’s portrayal of Miss Marple. Today, I watched Nemesis the one thousandth time and finally asked Google, “What is a milky drink?”
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Nemesis is one of my favorites!
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Thank you for sharing your posts. The first Miss Marple I saw was Margaret Rutherford, and I loved those movies as a child. But Joan Hickson’s portrayal is my favorite. She looked like my maternal grandmother, and those episodes bring me happy memories.
I wanted to share a recipe for a warm milky drink that was published in a local newspaper over 40 years ago. It was titled “Hot Toddy” and consisted of warm milk with a touch of vanilla extract and a spoonful of brown sugar. This drink immediately came to mind when I saw that scene from Nemesis.
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Thank you for writing. I love to hear from my readers! I’ve been so busy this summer but I will try to find time to share Christmas recipes and traditions soon.
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