Agatha Christie's Poirot - Development of The Series

Development of The Series

Clive Exton in partnership with producer Brian Eastman adapted the pilot episode and then twenty of the stories between 1989 and 2001, alongside many short story adaptations. "Principal adapter" Exton wrote The ABC Murders for the series and more controversially The Murder of Roger Ackroyd. It was described as "ingenious" in its dramatic conceit in attempting to interpret a denouement which relies upon a first-person narrative, but it did not receive unanimous praise from critics.

Anthony Horowitz is another prolific writer for the series, adapting three novels and nine short stories, while comedian and novelist Mark Gatiss has written two episodes and also guest-starred in the series, as has Peter Flannery.

Beginning with the episodes which aired in 2000 there was a noticeable downplaying of the humour of the earlier series. Also, the signature theme music and full title sequence were dropped from the opening credits, and when the theme music was used it was written and scored in a more sombre fashion. This is partly because the novels adapted are themselves darker and more psychologically driven.

Episodes released in 2003 and thereafter lack Fraser, Jackson, and Moran, who had appeared in most episodes before then, and also introduces Wanamaker. The introduction of Wanamaker's character and the absence of the other characters (Hastings, Japp, Lemon and Oliver) is consistent with the books on which the scripts were based. However on 17 June 2012 Suchet confirmed via Twitter that Hastings would be returning for two episodes of the final series (The Big Four and Curtain). It was not known whether or not Jackson and Moran would return, however their characters do appear in one of the stories to be filmed (The Labours of Hercules), and in July 2012 Suchet confirmed via Twitter that their characters would return. It was also confirmed that Wanamaker would return.

Following the launch of the ITV series Agatha Christie's Marple in 2004, the Poirot series was retitled Agatha Christie's Poirot. The previous titles and theme music were dropped. The visual style of these later episodes was noticeably different from earlier episodes: particularly, austere art deco settings and decor, widely used earlier in the series, were largely dropped in favour of more lavish settings (epitomised by the re-imagining of Poirot's home as a larger, more lavish apartment). Post-2004 episodes display the increasing use of religious themes and plot elements not found in Christie's novels and harkening instead to the work of authors such as Evelyn Waugh, and Graham Greene. Episodes following the rechristening saw some characterisations by their all-star casts, such as Zoë Wanamaker's portrayal of Ariadne Oliver, tend towards tongue-in-cheek; comedy actors, including Mark Gatiss, Daisy Donovan, and Steve Pemberton, have featured in the casts of these later episodes. These episodes also saw Poirot gain a valet, George.

Alongside recurring characters, the early series featured several actors who later achieved greater fame, such as Joely Richardson, (The Dream, 1989), Samantha Bond, ("The Adventure of the Cheap Flat", 1990), Christopher Eccleston (One, Two, Buckle My Shoe, 1992), Hermione Norris ("Jewel Robbery at The Grand Metropolitan", 1993), Damian Lewis (Hickory Dickory Dock, 1995), Jamie Bamber (The Murder of Roger Ackroyd, 2000), Russell Tovey (Evil Under the Sun, 2001), and Michael Fassbender (After the Funeral, 2006).

Series nine (2003–2004) featured James Fox as Colonel Race in Death on the Nile, alongside an "all-star cast" which included Emily Blunt, Daisy Donovan, and David Soul, while The Hollow featured his older brother Edward Fox as Gudgeon the butler.

Other veteran actors who have appeared in the later series include: Geraldine James, (After the Funeral, 2006), Elliott Gould, Lindsay Duncan and Roger Lloyd Pack, (The Mystery of the Blue Train, 2006), Siân Phillips (Mrs McGinty's Dead, 2008) and Tim Curry (Appointment with Death, 2008).

Nine actors have played more than one character in the series: Nicholas Farrell appeared as Donald Fraser in The ABC Murders (1992) and then as Major Knighton in The Mystery of the Blue Train (2005), Simon Shepherd appeared as David Hall in "Jewel Robbery at The Grand Metropolitan" (1993) and then as Dr Rendell in Mrs McGinty's Dead (2008) and Carol MacReady appeared as Mildred Croft in Peril at End House (1990) and then as Miss Johnson in Cat Among the Pigeons (2008). Meanwhile, David Yelland first appeared as Laverton West in "Murder in the Mews" (1989), but has played the recurring character of Poirot's manservant George since 2006. Beth Goddard appeared as Violet Wilson (Violet Marsh in the story) in The Case of the Missing Will (1993) and subsequently in 2008 as Sister Agnieszka in Appointment with Death (a character created for the episode, who does not appear in the novel). Pip Torrens first played Major Rich in The Mystery of the Spanish Chest (1991), and then returned to the series to play Jeremy Cloade in Taken at the Flood (2006). Lucy Liemann appeared first in Cards on the Table (2005) as Miss Burgess and later in 2008 as Sonia in Third Girl. Richard Lintern played John Lake in Dead Man's Mirror (1993) and later appeared as Guy Carpenter in Mrs McGinty's Dead (2008). Fenella Woolgar played the role of Lady Edgware's maid Ellis in Lord Edgware Dies and more recently played Elizabeth Whittaker in Hallowe'en Party. By a curious coincidence she also played Agatha Christie herself in "The Unicorn and the Wasp", an episode of Doctor Who. Beatie Edney appeared in 1990 as Mary Cavendish in The Mysterious Affair at Styles, and 21 years later as Beryl Hemmings in The Clocks (2011).

David Suchet confirmed that the filming of the last five novels, for series 13, begins on 15 October 2012, with Curtain: Poirot's Last Case shooting first out of the remaining books.