David Suchet says au revoir to Hercule Poirot
As we reported earlier this summer, Sir David Suchet will reprise his iconic role as the world famous Belgian detective, Hercule Poirot, for the very last time on Wednesday, 23 October at 9:00pm on ITV1. Wednesdays broadcast will begin the completion of Sir David’s brilliant work in bringing Agatha Christie’s Poirot to life which began with “The Adventure of the Clapham Cook” back in January of 1989. Almost 25 years and some 65 episodes later, the first of the final five episodes in the 13th and final series, “Elephants Can Remember” was broadcast on ITV1 in June. The final four, “Dead Man’s Folly”, “The Labours of Hercules” and “Curtain: Poirot’s Last Case” will tentatively be broadcast in the U.S. as part of PBS’ Masterpiece series beginning in September 2014.
There will, obviously, be mixed feelings by both Poirot fans worldwide and David Suchet himself as the series comes to a close, but ITV’s producer, Michele Buck, calmed the waters by saying: “We can promise the final Poirot films will be a fitting tribute to a much-loved literary character. When the ending comes it’ll be very dramatic and incredibly emotional. We’ve been on a remarkable journey with Poirot.”
When production began on the final series, Suchet reflected back on the last quarter century “I’m more than delighted to be reprising my role as Poirot. It’s been my life’s ambition to bring this amazing canon of works to completion. Poirot is a brilliant, yet profoundly complicated character and I’ve always loved playing him. He’s considerate, with a love of elegance and precision, but he is also so maddeningly frustrating to play as he’s so vain and pedantic! For all his faults he is one of the greatest listeners in literature. I’ve been so fortunate to play him. I’m excited, I will feel as though I have achieved a dream, but I’ll also be gutted, because I will be saying a real farewell and a goodbye [to Poirot] and then I will have to bury him.”
Unfortunately, it doesn’t make it any easier for David Suchet, but Poirot fans will be gutted as well.
