Updated 04/8/07

Poirot

Agatha Christie's Hercule Poirot is probably one of the best know and most liked of all the fictional detectives. He has style, he has class, but most of all he is an eccentric. In this series, David Suchet plays Poirot. As far as I am concerned there is no other Poirot. He interpretation is exactly how I envision the character. Also, this production has captured the look and feel of the 1930s perfectly with extreme attention to the detail of the sets. This is a classic.

There are 57 programs in this series so far. I have summaries only for the ones I have seen. I will add summaries as I view them.

1st Season 1989

"The adventure of the Clapham Cook"

Poirot reluctantly accepts an assignment to find a missing cook after the cook's employer convinces Poirot that a good cook is as precious as fine jewelry. Poirot's investigation uncovers evidence that the disappearance may be related to a serious crime that has been committed recently.

"Murder in the Mews"

A woman is found dead in her apartment. I appears to be a suicide. But is it? The victim was engaged to be married to a British politician She was last seen in the company of a mysterious man shortly before her death. She had a close relationship with her female roommate who is acting strangely during the investigate. Inspector Japp asks Poirot to join the investigation.

"The Adventure of Jonnie Waverly"

A country squire is receiving letters threatening to kidnap his son. At first the police are slow to react since it appears to be just a hoax The man asks Poirot to help protect his boy. Poirot finds it unusual and interesting that someone would announce that they were going to kidnap someone before the crime occurred.

"Four and Twenty Blackbirds"

At dinner with a friend, a famous artist is pointed out to Poirot. The waitress shares with Poirot that the artist, who is her regular customer, is acting strangely. The next day Poirot reads that the artist has died in an accident. This raises Poirot's curiously and he decides to investigate. He discovers that the artist's twin has died recently also.

"The Third Floor Flat"

A woman moves into Poirot's building two floors below his apartment. Right away there appears to be tension between this woman and the two women who live directly above the new renter. Returning from the theater, the two women and their boyfriends find they have misplaced their keys. The boyfriends set off to find an alternative way into the apartment and by mistake enter the new woman's apartment. They find her shot to death. Coming to investigate the commotion, Poirot takes over the investigation.

"Triangle at Rhodes"

While Poirot is vacationing in Rhodes, he observes the behavior of two couples from England on holiday. The couples met at the resort. One husband takes an overt interest in the other man's wife. This leads to tensions between the vacationers. Poirot senses trouble. One of the wives is poisoned.

"Problem at sea"

Poirot and Hastings are vacationing on the Mediterranean on a small luxurious cruise ship. One couple, an arrogant woman and her dependent husband, draws Poirot's attention. The woman is found murdered in the port Alexandra. The captain asks Poirot to investigate. Poirot unravels the complex current and past relationships between the passengers.

"The Incredible Theft"

Poirot is asked to attend a dinner at the home of an industrialist who is working on the development of a new fighter plane for England. One of the other guests at the dinner is an American woman who is believed to be a Nazi sympathizer. After dinner, part of the plans for the plane are found missing from the study. Poirot takes on the case. During the investigation, Poirot discovers that the industrialist's integrity has been questioned in the past.

"The King of Clubs"

Poirot accompanies Hastings to a movie studio to meet an old friend of the captain who is now a film director. There they witness the over bearing behavior of the studio head. That evening the studio head is found dead. He appears to have been murdered. The body is discovered by one of the leading ladies at the studio. The police feel he was murdered by gypsies. Poirot's investigation suggest a conspiracy.

"The Dream"

A wealthy man asks Poirot to investigate even though nothing has happened but a recurring bad dream.

2nd Season 1990

"Peril at End House "

Poirot and Hastings travel to a seaside resort for a holiday. At the resort, they meet a young woman who is the owner of local seaside estate. She tells Poirot about a strange series of mishaps she has been the victim of lately. Her car brakes have failed. Stones have toppled from the cliff just missing her. The picture over her bed has fallen from the wall . While they are talking, she swats at what she thinks is a bee flying by her head. Poirot notices a hole in her hat and later finds a bullet on the ground. Poirot decides he must protect this woman.

"The Veiled Lady"

Poirot is asked to meet a mysterious lady. The lady claims to be the daughter of a nobleman and is soon to be married. She confides to Poirot that she has been approached by a man who has a letter she once wrote to a boyfriend which could ruin her upcoming wedding. The man is blackmailing her. She is concerned that the blackmailer could become violent if his demands are not met. Poirot vows to defend her honor.

"The Lost Mine"

A Chinese national is found murdered in Chinatown. The man had recently arrived from China and had not appeared at a scheduled meeting with a group of bankers. The man supposedly had information about a lost Chinese silver mine. In the man's appointment book was found the name of a local investment broker. According to the hotel clerk, the broker was the last person seen with the victim.

"The Cornish Mystery"

A woman from a quaint country village travels to London to see Poirot. She believes she is being poisoned by her husband. Poirot agrees to go to the village to investigate the next day. Too late. The woman dies during the night. The husband is arrested, but Poirot is not so sure he committed the crime.

"The Disappearance of Mr. Davenheim"

A successful banker leaves home to meet a rival business man at the train station. He decides to walk to the station to get some air. The banker never arrives at the station and his clothes are found in a local lake. The banker's wife is distraught. There had been a long history of hostility between the banker and his business rival. In addition, the wife's jewels where stolen about the same time her husband turns up missing.

Poirot tells Inspector Japp that this is a simple mystery. Japp challenges Poirot to solve the mystery without leaving his flat and only with information gleaned by Poirot's associate Captain Hastings. A wager is made.

"Double Sin"

Poirot is thinking about retiring and he and Captain Hastings take a trip. On the bus they befriend a young woman who is carrying valuable antiques to an American buyer. During the trip, the valuables are stolen. Poirot does not want to take on the case because his is retiring, so Captain Hastings decides to help the girl.

"The Adventure of the Cheap Flat"

At a party, Poirot meets a couple who had extraordinary find. They just found an apartment at a substantially discounted rent. The odd part is the apartment at this low price has been on the market for months. It was a beautiful apartment. Poirot's interest is stimulated.

At the same time, Inspector Japp has to deal with an obnoxious FBI agent who has come to investigate an espionage case. While visiting Japp, Poirot notices that a man he saw outside the apartment in question also appears at the Scotland Yard/FBI stakeout. Poirot's gray cells are stimulated.

"The Kidnapped Prime Minister"

The Prime Minister is first shot at and then kidnapped. Poirot is brought in to find the him. The Prime Minister was scheduled to attend a critical meeting in Paris in regard to German rearmament. The Prime Minister has to be at the meeting in 32 hours. Not everyone has confidence in Poirot's methods.

"The Adventure of the Western Star"

On of Belgium's most famous movie actresses has asked to see Poirot. She has been receiving treating notes asking her to return a diamond, the Western Star. She received the diamond as a gift from her husband several years ago. Supposedly, the diamond had been mounted as one of the eyes of a Chinese statue of religious significance. Coincidently, a friend of the actress has been receiving similar notes. The friend has the Eastern Star which had represented the other eye in the statue.

"The Mysterious Affair at Styles"

Background: It is 1917. Hastings has returned from the front and is convalescing with a leg wound. Poirot has just arrived from Belgium as a war refugee. Hastings and Poirot had met briefly in Europe when Hastings was a suspect in a murder in Belgium.

Hastings is invited to stay at the home of an old friend. The friend shares with Hastings his unhappiness that his mother has married a much younger man. The son feels the new husband is only interested in his mother's fortune. One afternoon, the mother is heard having an argument with someone about an extramarital affair. She appears upset for the remainder of the day. That night she is poisoned. Poirot happens to be staying with other refugees in the local village. Hastings asks him to get involved in the investigation. Chief Inspector Japp is also sent by Scotland Yard to investigate. This is the first time the trio works together on a case.

3rd Season 1991

"How Does Your Garden Grow"

By chance, Poirot meets a crippled elderly woman at a garden show. During the brief encounter, the woman insists that he take a packet of seeds she is offering him. Back at his office, he receives a letter from the same woman post marked prior to the chance meeting at the show. In the letter, the woman implies that someone is plotting against her. When Poirot goes to see her, he learns that she was poisoned the night before. He meets the house keeper, the freeloading relatives and the russian nurse. Poirot is determined to discover who murdered the old woman.

"The Million Dollar Bond Robbery"

A British bank is transferring a million dollars worth of bonds to America. The bank executive who is to carrying the bonds has had several attempts on his life just before his scheduled departure on the Queen Mary for New York. If he cannot go, a junior executive from the bank will go in his place. The junior executive may have a reason to want to gain possession of the bonds. Poirot is called in to travel with the bonds to New York. The bonds are stolen at sea.

"The Affair at the Victory Ball"

Hastings persuades Poirot to attend a costume ball. Poirot goes as Poirot of course. At the ball, a British nobleman is murdered. A small amount of cocaine is found on the victim's body which is strange since the victim was involved in an anti-drug organization. The next day a person who had attended the ball with the nobleman is found dead of a drug overdose. Poirot is certain that the murderer can be found among the six people who attended the ball together. Two of those people are now dead.

"Wasps' Nest"

Poirot meets the son of a very old friend. The son introduces him to his fiancee at a carnival. Poirot detects that there is something wrong beneath the smiles. As Poirot spends more time with the couple, he is as introduced to is friend's best friend who is also the former boyfriend of the fiancee. Poirot becomes even more troubled. Then there is the mysterious man who is seen meeting with the fiancee on several occasions. In this case, Poirot wants to prevent a murder in stead of solving a crime after the fact.

"The Tragedy at Marsdon Manor"

Poirot is asked to investigate a murder in a small hamlet 125 miles from London. When he arrives, he finds out that that the murder in question is a fictional murder and that the person who asked him to come is a writer with writer's block. Poirot is not happy and plans to leave the next morning. On his way to the train he comes across the police who have just discover the body of a man who at first glance appears to have died of natural cases. However, Poirot sees signs of foul play and decides to investigate. There is the much younger wife. The strange guest recently returned from Africa. There are claims that the estate the victim and his wife lived on is haunted. Poirot must sort it all out.

"The Double Clue"

Chief Inspector Japp has asked Poirot to help him solve a string of jewel thefts. Japp's career could be on the line. During the course of the investigation Poirot meets a Russian countess who happens to have been at the scene of all the thefts. Poirot becomes romantically involved with the countess who appears to be a prime suspect. How will Poirot handle this situation?

"The Mystery of the Spanish Chest"

A old friend of Poirot's asks him to see if the her friend is in any danger from her jealous husband. The husband suspects that she is having an affair. In an attempt to observe the couple and the man she is suspected of having an affair with, Poirot attends a party. The next day the jealous husband is found dead, killed in a bizarre fashion. The murder appears to have taken place at the party with Poirot unaware.

"The Theft of the Royal Ruby"

A young prince is robbed of a priceless ruby by a young woman he takes out to dinner. The theft could affect the relations between England and Egypt. The government calls in Poirot to investigate. They ask him to spend Christmas with the family of an Egyptologist who happens to be one of the few people that was aware that the prince had the jewel. Also staying at the house for the holidays are the suitor of the Egyptologist's daughter and his sister. The Christmas pudding holds an unusual surprise.

"The Plymouth Express"

An Australian business man and is daughter are staying in England. The daughter decides to visit friends in the West country. Against her father's wishes she takes all her jewels with her. She does not arrive at her destination. The father asks Poirot to investigate. There are several suspects: the estranged ex-husband with a gambling problem and the french suitor.

"The Mystery of Hunter's Lodge"

Hastings is invited to go Grouse hunting and asks Poirot to go a long. Poirot is miserable and becomes ill. One evening after the hunt, the master of the lodge is found shot to death. He is not a well liked man and a number of people stand to profit from this death. There is also the mysterious housekeeper who disappears after the crime. Poirot investigates from his sick bed.

4th Season 1992

"The ABC Murders"

Poirot receives a letter challenging him to stop a series of murders before they happen. The letter is signed A B C. The letters, ABC, signify the first letters of the places the murders will be committed and the first letters of the victims names. Because of an apparent lack of clues and motive, Poirot is concerned that these murders could continue unsolved like those of the infamous Jack the Ripper. Poirot must find the common thread between the murders.

"Death in the Clouds "

A woman is murdered with a poison dart on a plane returning from Paris. Poirot is a fellow passenger, but does not witness the actual crime because he is sleeping. Most of the passengers had met casually in one way or another prior to the flight at a championship tennis match. As Poirot investigates the crime, he discovers that the victim has a notorious past.

"One, Two, Buckle My Shoe"

Poirot's dentist is found dead the same day Poirot had some dental work done in his office. Chief Inspector Japp believes the death is a suicide. Poirot does not. Later, two more of the doctor's patients who had appointments the day of his death are found dead. Poirot ponders the connection between these deaths.

5th Season 1993

"The adventure of the Egyptian Tomb"

After opening an Egyptian tomb, it appears that the archeologists are becoming victims of an ancient curse associated with the tomb. Although seemingly unrelated, the discovery team begin to die one by one. When one of the victim's sons decides to go to Egypt to continue his father's work, his mother asks Poirot to look after him. Poirot does not believe in the supernatural nor does he believe the deaths are coincidences.

"The Underdog"

Hastings persuades Poirot to go to a golf tournament with him because Poirot will have an opportunity to have dinner with someone he wants to meet. It turns out that the man is an overbearing tyrant. He is businessman who only values money and is despised by many. That night after dinner, the man is murdered. Poirot investigates. The murder could be related to a formula that the businessman stole and is planning to sell to Germany, but then there are people with other motives.

"The Yellow Iris"

Poirot travels to Argentina to meet up with Hastings on a ranch. He is delayed in the capital city because of a threatened overthrow of the government. While having dinner, he witnesses the poisoning death of a woman, a British heiress, at the next table. The Argentine police declare the death a suicide. Poirot offers to investigate and is deported after the government is overthrown.

It is two years later and the husband decides to reenact the night of his wife's death. He believes his wife was murdered and hopes of identifying the real murderer. Anonymously, Poirot is invited to get involved with the reenactment. Is another murder about to be committed?

"The Case of the Missing Will"

Poirot is invited to the estate of an old friend. The friend is very ill and confides to Poirot that he plans to change his will leaving everything to his young female ward. By making this change, he will be disinheriting a number of different people. The night before he plans to make the change, he is found dead. The death is ruled to have been by natural causes. Poirot is not so certain. In addition, the old will disappears which will mean that the next closest relative will inherit everything. Who is that person? Poirot is certain that when that person steps forward he will have found the murderer.

"The Adventure of the Italian Nobleman"

Miss Lemon has a new admirer who she introduces to Poirot. The man tells a tale of blackmail and intrigue regarding his employer, an Italian nobleman, but does not identify the employer. Poirot is surprised to meet the man again at the scene of a murder. The victim is the man's employer. Poirot is sure the murder is related to the blackmail.

"The Chocolate Box"

Poirot travels back to Belgium with Chief Inspector Japp. In Belgium, Poirot meets people he worked with as a young policeman. The subject of the case of the death of a young politician is revisited. Many were critical of the way the young Poirot handled the case. Poirot feels it is time to reveal the real facts in the case and takes Japp back on a trip into the past.

"Dead Man's Mirror"

At a fine furniture auction, Poirot loses in the bidding for an art deco mirror but wins a new client willing to part with the mirror for Poirot's services.

"Jewel Robbery at the Grand Metropolitan"

Poirot's doctor sends him on a holiday to rest. At the resort where he is staying, there is a play being performed that uses a expensive necklace as a prop to gain publicity for the production. The necklace is stolen and Poirot is asked to investigate. Inspector Japp is also involved in the investigation and he believes the woman left in charge of the necklace has to be involved in its thief, but Poirot is not so sure.

Specials - 1995 & 1996

"Hercule Poirot's Christmas"

Poirot plans a quiet Christmas in London until learning that it also will be a cold one, owing to his flat's broken boiler. When a wealthy old man calls for the detective's help, Poirot opts for a working holiday at the man's well-heated country estate. No warmth exudes from the home's occupants, however, and Poirot winds up with a murder to solve, family politics to unravel and shocking revelations from the past to sort out.

"Hickory Dickory Dock"

Miss Lemon has a cousin who is working at a student hostel. She reports to Poirot that a number of items have turned up missing at the hostel and she asks for his advise. When he examines the list of missing items, he finds it to be very curious. He asks if she could arrange for him to visit the hostel. During the visit, he becomes concerned that something more serious than petty thief is taking place. He senses that someone may be plotting a murder. Several days later a student is poisoned.

"Murder on the Links"

Hastings invites Poirot to go on holiday with him to France. Poirot is looking forward to a elegant hotel with a superb cuisine. Hastings has them booked into a golf club. While at the resort, Poirot is approached by a man who claims that his life is in danger. He says he is being pursued by people from Chile. Poirot agrees to meet with him the next day. Overnight, the man is kidnapped by two spanish men and latter found died. Poirot is determined to solve the crime although he is in competition with a European detective who claims to be the best in the world. Poirot feels there is something familiar about this case. As a side note, Hastings falls in love.

6th Season 1997

"Dumb Witness"

Poirot goes along with Hastings to witness an attempt to break the world speed record on water. The attempt was a failure and the boat's owner verbally lashes out at his mother who will not give him any more money. Shortly after, the woman falls down the stairs. Local police call it an accident, but Poirot is not so sure. The woman has three children: a son, the boat owner and sportsman who has no money, a single daughter who is also in need of money, a married daughter who is in a loveless marriage to a European. Several days later, the woman dies and Poirot is sure she was poisoned. Poirot develops a fondness for the woman's dog who he is certain is a "dumb witness" to the crime.

7th Season 2000

"The Murder of Roger Ackroyd"

Hercule Poirot has retired to a country village, until his neighbor is found murdered. Poirot reunites with his old partner, Chief Inspector Japp, to find the culprit, exposing a web of blackmail, envy, and murder.

"Lord Edgware Dies"

Poirot agrees to visit the husband of a famous actress to urge him to reconsider her request for a divorce. Edgware insists that he has already agreed to his wife's request. Yet, within twenty-four hours, he is found murdered.

8th Season 2001

"Evil Under the Sun"

An opulent beach resort is the setting as Hercules Poirot attempts to unravel the murder of an actress everyone has reason to hate.

"Murder in Mesopotamia"

An archeologist's beautiful but unpopular wife is murdered while the couple is in the Middle East excavating an historical site. Though there is no shortage of suspects, clues are few and misleading, and the local authorities turn to their esteemed guest, Poirot, for help.

9th Season - 2003 & 2004

"Five Little Pigs"

Fourteen years after the wife of the renowned painter Amyas Crale was sent to the gallows for poisoning her husband, their daughter Lucy returns from Canada. Lucy carries with her a letter that suggests that her mother might have been innocent. Poirot agrees to dig up the past, but he warns Lucy that she may not like what he finds.

"Sad Cypress"

Elinor Carlisle has been accused of killing her wealthy Aunt and a rival in love. When Poirot comes to the case he quickly finds motive, opportunity and means for Elinor to have done the double murder. But a tidy package is not enough to satisfy Poirot's curiosity. With the help of a friend and admirer of Ms. Carlisle, Poirot eventually pieces together an entirely different picture of what really happened.

"Death on the Nile"

When Linnet Doyle steals and marries her best friend's fiance, the best friend gets her revenge by hounding the newlyweds throughout their honeymoon. A subsequent pleasure cruise down the River Nile turns deadly when the widely despised Mrs. Doyle is found murdered. Thank goodness Poirot is along for the ride.

"The Hollow"

Cordially invited to The Hollow for a weekend get-together, Hercule Poirot arrives just in time to see Gerda Christow standing, revolver in hand, over the dead body of her husband. Though it seems obvious she has killed her wayward spouse, Poirot doesn't believe things are so simple, especially when all the guests seem to loathe each other. Love, deceit, mystery, and death -- rest assured Poirot will get to the heart of the matter.

10th Season 2006

"The Mystery of the Blue Train "

Poirot finds himself traveling on the Blue Train to the French Riviera with a loosely acquainted group of people. There is a flamboyant middle age woman, her young husband, daughter and young relative who has just received an inheritance. There is the daughter of wealth American businessman, her drunken husband and secret lover. There is strange woman who appears to have some type of relationship with the wealth American. One of these people is murdered on the train.

"Cards on the Table "

A wealthy London eccentric arranges for a dinner party with some unusual guests. The guest list includes a mystery writer, three sleuths and four other guests who the host implies may have crimes in their pasts. A murder is committed while the guests are playing bridge. This episode reminds me of a classic old mystery board game. Who is the killer among those invited?

"After the Funeral "

A wealthy man dies of what appears to be natural causes on his country estate. His body is quickly cremated. The man had no children, but the nieces, nephew, sister, brother and sister-in-law gather for the funeral and the reading of the will. The contents of the recently amended will cause the family lawyer to ask Poirot to investigate.

"Taken at the Flood"

A wealthy businessman is killed from a gas explosion along with a number of his guests. The only survivors are his young wife and her brother. The man's family resent the young widow because she inherits the fortune. They view her as a gold digger. The woman's brother is a controlling, cruel and charismatic person who is intent on protecting his sister from the group. The family uncovers evidence that the woman's first husband may not have died making her a bigamist and unable to inherit. Mysteriously, the person bringing that news is murdered. A complicated case for Poirot.

For a full list of available DVDs see below!

Open Printable Window

Important! If you only received this page and there is no menu on the left, please click on BritishMysteries.com

Thank you!

Poirot

Click for "Poirot" DVDs, Videos and Agatha Christie books

Amazon.com Affiliate

When you purchase a DVD or other product through my aStore you are actually buying through Amazon.com with all the security and customer service provided by Amazon.com. I get a small commission which does not affect your price and helps support this site. Please consider making your purchase through my aStore - Thanks!

Based on the novels by Agatha Christie

Poirot

Poirot