Poirot on TV Season 12 - Everything Agatha

Filming all took place in England. Eltham Palace is used as the setting for Bartholomew Strange’s home – the same location was used for Wode Hall in the ITV production of Death on the Nile and is also the home of the Crackenthorpes in the Marple episode ‘4.50 from Paddington’.

Based on the novel by Agatha Christie ‘Three Act Tragedy’ published in 1934. It is also known as ‘Murder in Three Acts’. An earlier feature film was created in 1986 starring Peter Ustinov as Hercule Poirot. Both adaptations stay close to the original plot with only minor deviations.

St Anne’s Court in St Anns Hill, Chertsey, Surreywas used for the exterior shots of Sir Charles Cartwright’s house ‘Crow’s Nest’. CGI was used to position the house on a cliff top an the same house was used as the Carpenter’s home in Mrs McGinty’s Dead in 2008.

The same location Eltham Palace is used for Bartholomew Strange’s home – the same location was used for Wode Hall in Death on the Nile and the Crackenthorpe estate in the Marple episode ‘4.50 from Paddington’.

Kimberly Nixon who plays ‘Egg’ later appeared as Louisa Oxley in the Marple episode ‘Greenshaw’s Folly’.

Jane Asher (Lady Mary) also featured in the 2004 Marple episode ‘Murder at the Vicarage’ as Mrs Lester

SEASON 12

Episode 2 Hallowe'en Party

Based on the novel by Agatha Christie and aired in October 2010. A child declares at a Hallowe’en party that she once saw a murder. No one believes her of course – until she turns up dead – drowned in the apple bobbing bucket.

Cast

Hercule Poirot, David Suchet

Judith Butler, Amelia Bullmore

Ariadne Oliver, Zoë Wanamaker

Rowena Drake, Deborah Findlay

Miranda Butler, Mary Higgins

Mrs Reynolds, Sophie Thompson

Frances Drake, Georgia King

Edmund Drake, Ian Hallard

Reverend Cottrell, Timothy West

Miss Whittaker, Fenella Woolgar

Joyce Reynolds, Macy Nyman

Leopold Reynolds, Richard Breislin

George, David Yelland

Mrs Goodbody, Paola Dionisotti

Michael Garfield, Julian Rhind-Tutt

Inspector Raglan, Paul Thornley

Olga Seminoff, Vera Graziadei

Mrs Llewellyn-Smythe, Phyllida Law

Mr Fullerton, Eric Sykes

Filming all took place in England with the topiary gardens as Beckley Park as Michael Garfield’s creation and Hatfield House for the house.

Agatha Christie’s novel ‘Hallowe’en Party’ was first published in 1969 and is one of the last three novels to feature Hercule Poirot.

Hatfield House was also used for ‘Chimneys’ in the Marple episode ‘The Secret of Chimneys’.

Julian Rhind-Tutt (Michael Garfield) appeared in the 2007 Marple episode ‘Ordeal by Innocence’ where he played Dr Calgary

Ian Hallard who plays Edmund Drake also appeared in the 2006 Marple adaptation of ‘The Sittaford Mystery’ as a reporter.

Timothy West who plays Reverand Cotterall is also no stranger to Agatha Christie as he appeared in the 1982 film ‘Murder is Easy’ as Lord Gorden Easterfield as well as a 1979 film ‘Agatha’ about the famous author herself.

Fenella Woolgar (Miss Whittiker) also appeared as Ellis in the 2000 Poirot adaptation of ‘Lord Edgware Dies’ and has narrated ‘The Last Seance’ a collection of Agatha Christie’s supernatural tales for audiobook.

Paola Dionisotti (Mrs Goodbody) played Miss Hinchcliffe in a 1985 mini series of ‘A Murder is Announced’.

This was Phyllida Law’s second appearance in a Poirot episode. She plays Mrs Llewellyn-Smythe but also appeared in the 1989 episode of ‘The Incredible Theft’ as Lady Carrington.

Phyllida Law is Sophie Thompson’s mother – Sophie plays Mrs Reynolds so mother and daughter acted alongside one another.

SEASON 12

Episode 3 Murder on the Orient Express

Based on one of the most famous of Agatha Christie’s novels, aired in December 2010.

Cast

Hercule Poirot, David Suchet

Lieutenant Morris, Tristan Shepherd

Lieutenant Blanchflower, Sam Crane

Samuel Ratchett, Toby Jones

Hector MacQueen, Brian J. Smith

John Arbuthnot, David Morrissey

Mary Debenham, Jessica Chastain

Concierge, Stewart Scudamore

Xavier Bouc, Serge Hazanavicius

Princess Dragomiroff, Eileen Atkins

Hildegarde Schmidt, Susanne Lothar

Pierre Michel, Denis Ménochet

Caroline Hubbard, Barbara Hershey

Edward Masterman, Hugh Bonneville

Greta Ohlsson, Marie-Josée Croze

Count Andrenyi, Stanley Weber

Countess Andrenyi, Elena Satine

Antonio Foscarelli, Joseph Mawle

Dr Constantine, Samuel West

Adulteress Wife (uncredited), Tiziana Azzopardi

Passenger (uncredited), Ekaterina Botziou

Turkish Husband (uncredited), Manuel Cauchi

Train Engineer (uncredited), David Lyddon

Yugolslavian Police Captain (uncredited), Darren Petrucci

Hawker (uncredited), Umit Ulgen

A replica of the Orient Express was created in the Pinewood Studios where much of the production was filmed. Some of the outdoor scenes were shot in Malta.

Agatha Christie’s novel ‘Murder on the Orient Express’ was first published in 1934 and is one of her most famous murder mysteries. It was also published under the title ‘Murder on the Calais Coach’ in America.

The amazing Toby Jones (Rachett) also appeared in the mini series ‘The Witness for the Prosecution’ as John Mayhew.

You may recognise Eileen Atkins (Princess Dragomiroff) as Lady Tressillian in the Marple episode ‘Towards Zero’.

Hugh Bonneville also previously appeared in an episode of Marple playing Inspector Hewitt in ‘The Mirror Crack’d from Side to Side’ in 2010.

SEASON 12

Episode 4 The Clocks

Based on the novel by Agatha Christie and aired in December 2011. A typist is called to a job but when she arrives at the house there is only the dead body of a man surrounded by various clocks. Screaming she runs into the street where she meets Lt. Colonel Race who enlists the help of his friend, a certain Belgium detective, to help investigate.

Cast

Hercule Poirot, David Suchet

Annabel Larkin, Olivia Grant

Fiona Hanbury, Anna Skellern

Lt. Colin Race, Tom Burke

Sven Hjerson, Andrew Havill

Mrs Swinburne, Victoria Wicks

Sheila Webb, Jaime Winstone

Nora Brent, Sinead Keenan

Miss Martindale, Lesley Sharp

Miss Pebmarsh, Anna Massey

Inspector Hardcastle, Phil Daniels

Constable Jenkins, Ben Righton

Mrs Hemmings, Beatie Edney

Rachel Waterhouse, Abigail Thaw

Matthew Waterhouse, Guy Henry

Vice Admiral Hamling, Geoffrey Palmer

May, Phoebe Strickland

Jenny, Isabella Parriss

Val Bland, Tessa Peake-Jones

Joe Bland, Jason Watkins

Christopher Mabbutt, Stephen Boxer

Professor Purdy, Andrew Forbes

Merlina Rival, Frances Barber

Filming for ‘The Clocks’ took place in England with the beach and seaside scenes being filmed at St Margaret’s Bay in Kent. The shots of Wilbraham crescent were actually filmed in Waterloo Crescent, Islington in London.

Agatha Christie’s novel ‘The Clocks’ was first published in 1963.