Thank You David Suchet

Yes Hastings, it’s true. I’m sitting here looking at a group of DVDs, they are staring back with an unforgettable face, David Suchet’s inimitable Hercule Poirot. If you are a fan then you already know that Suchet has taken his final bow as the little Belgian after 25 years with Poirots final and life ending case “Curtain.”

Where have the years gone? I scratch my head and have no answer. The little grey cells they are not working, perhaps there are too many grey hairs warming them. In the early eighties Granada Television launched a little series called “The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes” starring Jeremy Brett as the legendary detective. It became an international hit and fans proclaimed Brett’s portrayal, rightfully so, the definitive Holmes, casting a giant shadow over all the other actors to have taken on the role. It was so successful that they kept doing them periodically with both Brett and the producers vowing to film the entire canon of stories. Unfortunately Brett’s untimely death prevented this. In 1989 LTW launched a series about another iconic detective, Agatha Christies Hercule Poirot. Like Holmes there had been many interpretations of Poirot by many actors including the venerable Peter Ustinov but none really captured the Poirot that Christie had described. I knew I would watch the U.S. premier on PBS but would lightning really strike twice? The 25 year answer is yes!

British actor David Suchet did not simply don a padded suit and do a caricature of an odd little man. He immersed himself in Christie’s work and compiled his own “bible” of Poirot’s mannerisms, dress and personality. Above all he never once portrayed Poirot as a buffoon. He created a real person, quirks and all, that the viewer could identify with. At his core Poirot is a good, honest and moral man, Suchet tapped into this and presented a well defined character that you couldn’t help but grow to love and admire.

It has been a wonderful and entertaining journey. I will miss Hercule Poirot but we are lucky as fans to have had this remarkable breadth of work to enjoy and there is a definite feeling of closure. We got to say goodbye, that’s rare. He will live on in DVDs and mine certainly get played a lot.

Thank you David Suchet, may your little grey cells always guide you well!