The following is a list of episodes for the British crime drama Agatha Christie's Poirot. It first aired on 8 January 1989 and all episodes have aired on ITV (ITV1 from 2001-2013, STV and UTV).
Episodes run for either approximately 50 minutes, or approximately 100 minutes (the latter are marked "feature-length" in the table below). The shorter episodes are based on Christie's short stories featuring Poirot, many published in the 1920s. The TV adaptations were considerably embellished from the original stories' plots and were set in 1936 instead of the 1920s et al. as is shown by the inclusion of actual historical events such as Fred Perry's win at the French Open and the Jarrow March.[1]
The longer episodes are based on Christie's novels. The chronology differs significantly from that of the novels and, as with the shorter episodes, all the stories whose book versions were set in other decades are moved to in or around the year 1936. The Mysterious Affair at Styles (Christie's first Poirot novel) is taken outside the established series narrative, set back in 1917 (although the novel was set in 1916). It deals with the detective's first mystery in England. The Adventure of the Clapham Cook, How Does Your Garden Grow and Death in the Clouds were all moved back to 1935. Appointment with Death and Sad Cypress are moved forward to 1937. Murder on the Orient Express and Elephants Can Remember move the narrative forward to 1938, just before the outbreak of the Second World War. Curtain is also moved forward to 1949, after the end of the Second World War.
Another episode, "The Chocolate Box", in which Poirot recalls a case from his early career in the Belgian police force, also includes numerous flashbacks from the early 1900s with a younger-looking Poirot. "Five Little Pigs" has many flashbacks to the 1920s, but none of the detectives appear in them. The episode "Hickory Dickory Dock" has a flashback to 10 years earlier in 1926, where Japp appears, investigating a murder. "Yellow Iris" has flashbacks to 1934, in Buenos Aires, Argentina where Poirot appears on holiday. Hercule Poirot's Christmas has a flashback to 1896, which later has a bearing on the case.
Regular Cast
| Actor | Character | Title/Rank | Series | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| David Suchet | Hercule Poirot | Various | 1-13 | 1989–2013 |
| Hugh Fraser | Arthur Hastings | Captain OBE | 1-8, 13 | 1989–2002, 2013 |
| Philip Jackson | James Japp | Chief Inspector | 1-8, 13 | 1989–2001, 2013 |
| Pauline Moran | Felicity Lemon | Secretary | 1-3, 5-8, 13 | 1989–1991, 1993–2001, 2013 |
| Zoë Wanamaker | Ariadne Oliver | Crime novelist | 10-13 | 2006–2013 |
Series 1 (1989)
| Title | UK airdate | Recurring cast | Guest cast | IMDb link | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Adventure of the Clapham Cook | 8 January 1989 |
|
|
[1] | |||
| Murder in the Mews | 15 January 1989 |
|
|
[2] | |||
| The Adventure of Johnnie Waverly | 22 January 1989 |
|
|
[3] | |||
| Four and Twenty Blackbirds | 29 January 1989 |
|
|
[4] | |||
| The Third Floor Flat | 5 February 1989 |
|
|
[5] | |||
| Triangle at Rhodes | 12 February 1989 |
|
[6] | ||||
| Problem at Sea | 19 February 1989 | Captain Hastings |
|
[7] | |||
| The Incredible Theft | 26 February 1989 |
|
|
[8] | |||
| The King of Clubs | 12 March 1989 |
|
|
[9] | |||
| The Dream | 19 March 1989 |
|
|
[10] |
Series 2 (1990)
| Title | UK airdate | Recurring cast | Guest cast | IMDb link | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Peril at End House (feature-length) |
7 January 1990 |
|
|
[11] | |||
| The Veiled Lady | 14 January 1990 |
|
|
[12] | |||
| The Lost Mine | 21 January 1990 |
|
|
[13] | |||
| The Cornish Mystery | 28 January 1990 |
|
|
[14] | |||
| The Disappearance of Mr. Davenheim | 4 February 1990 |
|
|
[15] | |||
| Double Sin | 11 February 1990 |
|
|
[16] | |||
| The Adventure of the Cheap Flat | 18 February 1990 |
|
|
[17] | |||
| The Kidnapped Prime Minister | 25 February 1990 |
|
|
[18] | |||
| The Adventure of the Western Star | 4 March 1990 |
|
|
[19] |
Series 3 (1991)
| Title | UK airdate | Recurring cast | Guest cast | IMDb link | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Mysterious Affair at Styles (feature-length) |
16 September 1990 |
|
|
[20] | |||
| How Does Your Garden Grow? | 6 January 1991 |
|
|
[21] | |||
| The Million Dollar Bond Robbery | 13 January 1991 |
|
|
[22] | |||
| The Plymouth Express | 20 January 1991 |
|
|
[23] | |||
| Wasps' Nest | 27 January 1991 |
|
|
[24] | |||
| The Tragedy at Marsdon Manor | 3 February 1991 |
|
|
[25] | |||
| The Double Clue | 10 February 1991 |
|
|
[26] | |||
| The Mystery of the Spanish Chest | 17 February 1991 |
|
|
[27] | |||
| The Theft of the Royal Ruby | 24 February 1991 |
|
[28] | ||||
| The Affair at the Victory Ball | 3 March 1991 |
|
|
[29] | |||
| The Mystery of Hunter's Lodge | 10 March 1991 |
|
|
[30] |
Series 4 (1992)
| Title | UK airdate | Recurring cast | Guest cast | IMDb link | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| The ABC Murders (feature-length) |
5 January 1992 |
|
|
[31] | |||
| Death in the Clouds (feature-length) |
12 January 1992 | Inspector Japp |
|
[32] | |||
| One, Two, Buckle My Shoe (feature-length) |
19 January 1992 | Inspector Japp |
|
[33] |
Series 5 (1993)
| Title | UK airdate | Recurring cast | Guest cast | IMDb link | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Adventure of the Egyptian Tomb | 17 January 1993 |
|
|
[34] | |||
| The Underdog | 24 January 1993 |
|
|
[35] | |||
| Yellow Iris | 31 January 1993 |
|
|
[36] | |||
| The Case of the Missing Will | 7 February 1993 |
|
|
[37] | |||
| The Adventure of the Italian Nobleman | 14 February 1993 |
|
|
[38] | |||
| The Chocolate Box | 21 February 1993 | Inspector Japp |
|
[39] | |||
| Dead Man's Mirror | 28 February 1993 |
|
|
[40] | |||
| Jewel Robbery at the Grand Metropolitan | 7 March 1993 |
|
|
[41] |
Series 6 (1995–96)
| Title | UK airdate | Recurring cast | Guest cast | IMDb link | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hercule Poirot's Christmas (feature-length) |
1 January 1995 | Inspector Japp |
|
[42] | |||
| Hickory Dickory Dock (feature-length) |
12 February 1995 |
|
|
[43] | |||
| Murder on the Links (feature-length) |
11 February 1996 | Captain Hastings |
|
[44] | |||
| Dumb Witness (feature-length) |
16 March 1996 | Captain Hastings |
|
[45] |
Series 7 (2000)
| Title | UK airdate | Recurring cast | Guest cast | IMDb link | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Murder of Roger Ackroyd (feature-length) |
2 January 2000 | Inspector Japp |
|
[46] | |||
| Lord Edgware Dies (feature-length) |
19 February 2000 |
|
|
[47] |
Series 8 (2001–02)
| Title | UK airdate | Recurring cast | Guest cast | IMDb link | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Evil Under the Sun (feature-length) |
20 April 2001 |
|
|
[48] | |||
| Murder in Mesopotamia (feature-length) |
2 June 2002 | Captain Hastings |
|
[49] |
Series 9 (2003–04)
| Title | UK airdate | Recurring cast | Guest cast | IMDb link | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Five Little Pigs (feature-length) |
14 December 2003 |
|
[50] | ||||
| Sad Cypress (feature-length) |
26 December 2003 |
|
[51] | ||||
| Death on the Nile (feature-length) |
12 April 2004 |
|
[52] | ||||
| The Hollow (feature-length) |
26 April 2004 |
|
[53] |
Series 10 (2006)
| Title | UK airdate | Recurring cast | Guest cast | IMDb link | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Mystery of the Blue Train (feature-length) |
1 January 2006 |
|
[54] | ||||
| Cards on the Table (feature-length) |
19 March 2006 | Ariadne Oliver |
|
[55] | |||
| After the Funeral (feature-length) |
26 March 2006 |
|
[56] | ||||
| Taken at the Flood (feature-length) |
2 April 2006 | George |
|
[57] |
Series 11 (2008–09)
| Title | UK airdate | Recurring cast | Guest cast | IMDb link | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mrs McGinty's Dead (feature-length) |
14 September 2008 |
|
|
[58] | |||
| Cat Among the Pigeons (feature-length) |
21 September 2008 |
|
[59] | ||||
| Third Girl (feature-length) |
28 September 2008 |
|
|
[60] | |||
| Appointment with Death (feature-length) |
25 December 2009 |
|
[61] |
Series 12 (2010–11)
| Title | UK airdate | Recurring cast | Guest cast | IMDb link | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Three Act Tragedy (feature-length) |
3 January 2010 | George |
|
[62] | |||
| Hallowe'en Party (feature-length) |
27 October 2010 |
|
|
[63] | |||
| Murder on the Orient Express (feature-length) |
25 December 2010 |
|
[64] | ||||
| The Clocks (feature-length) |
26 December 2011 |
|
[65] |
Series 13 (2013–14)
| Title | UK airdate | Recurring cast | Guest cast | IMDb link | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Elephants Can Remember (feature-length) |
9 June 2013 | Ariadne Oliver |
|
[66] | |||||
| The Big Four (feature-length) |
TBA | Captain Hastings, Inspector Japp, Miss Lemon, George |
|
[67] | |||||
| The Labours of Hercules (feature-length) |
TBA |
|
[68] | ||||||
| Dead Man's Folly (feature-length) |
TBA | Ariadne Oliver |
|
[69] | |||||
| Curtain (feature-length) |
12 January 2014 | Captain Hastings, George |
|
[70] |
Combined stories
The only story not to be adapted into a proper episode was the play Black Coffee. In 2012, Suchet performed a rehearsed reading of Black Coffee, produced and presented by The Agatha Christie Theatre Company, in aid of Chichester Festival Theatre's restoration fund.
Additionally, a number of Hercule Poirot short stories were expanded into other stories or novels and have not been filmed in their original form. These are:
| Original Story Title | Adaptation Title | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| The Lemesurier Inheritance
(1923) |
The Labours of Hercules (2013) | Woven into plot of the final series. |
| The Market Basing Mystery (1923) | Murder in the Mews | Expanded into full length episode. |
| The Submarine Plans (1923) | The Incredible Theft | Expanded into full length episode. |
| Christmas Adventure (1923) | The Adventure of the Christmas Pudding | Expanded into full length episode. |
| The Mystery of the Baghdad Chest (1932) | The Mystery of the Spanish Chest | Expanded into full length episode. |
| The Second Gong (1932) | Dead Man's Mirror' | Expanded into full length episode. |
| The Regatta Mystery (1936) | None | A story attributed to the character Parker Pyne, because Christie expanded the short story into a more famous telling sharing the same title and featuring Pyne as the detective. |
| The Greenshore Folly (unpublished novella) | Dead Man's Folly | Expanded into full length episode. |
| The Incident of the Dog's Ball (posthumous) | Dumb Witness | Expanded into full length episode. |
| The Capture of Cerberus (posthumous short story) | Possibly The Labours of Hercules | Originally written to be the last of The Labours of Hercules, but Christie re-wrote the entire story (keeping the title) to its political content. |
- ↑ Template:Cite web