Being Poirot

Being Poirot is a 2013 documentary about actor David Suchet's experiences playing Hercule Poirot for more than two decades in the television series Agatha Christie's Poirot.

Being Poirot is a 2013 50-minute ITV television documentary, in which David Suchet attempts to unravel the mysterious appeal of Hercule Poirot and how he portrayed him. It was broadcast in the United Kingdom on the same evening as the final episode Curtain.

Suchet visited Greenway, Agatha Christie's summer home, recollecting how he met her daughter Rosalind and her husband Anthony Hicks for their approval before he began filming. He now meets Christie's grandson Mathew Pritchard who recounts how his grandmother found the character amongst Belgian refugees in Torquay. A visit to the permanent Poirot exhibition at Torquay Museum to which he presented the cane he used in the television series.

Suchet acknowledged the first stage and film adaptations of the books with actors such as Charles Laughton on the London stage in Alibi, an adaptation of The Murder of Roger Ackroyd, in 1928. Alibi was filmed in 1931 with Austin Trevor but is now lost. The oldest surviving film portrayal from 1934 was Lord Edgware Dies again with Austin Trevor portraying Poirot. Suchet notes a conscious decision was made by the film company to portray Poirot without a moustache. Films featuring Albert Finney and Peter Ustinov were also featured. Suchet reveals that he read the books and wrote down 93 notes about the character that he went on to use in his portrayal. The descriptions in the books helped him discover the voice he would use, and the rapid mincing gait.

Suchet also goes to Florin Court, a place that the production company choose to represent his home Whitehaven Mansions. There he meets first producer Brian Eastman, with whom he discusses the set that was built based on the flats, and Eastman's decision to fix the stories in 1936. Suchet also visits composer Christopher Gunning who had composed four themes for Eastman, the first being Gunning's favourite. Eastman chose the fourth after having Gunning darken the tone.

Suchet travels to Brussels, where he is feted by the police chief and mayor. He then goes to Ellezelles, which claims to be the birthplace of Poirot, and he is shown a birth certificate as proof. It says the date was 1 April, "April Fools' Day" (no year mentioned). Finally, Suchet travels on the Orient Express and recounts filming the episode "Dead Man's Folly" last at Greenway to finish on a high note.

Featuring

 * David Suchet - Self - Presenter /  Narrator
 * Sean O'Connor - Self - David Suchet's driver
 * Michele Buck - Self - Executive Producer
 * Geoffrey Wansell - Self - Poirot Biographer & Friend
 * Sheila Ferris - Self - David Suchet's wife
 * Mathew Prichard - Self - Agatha Christie's Grandson
 * Carl Smith - Self - Torquay Museum
 * Amie Schofield - Self - Torquay Museum
 * John Curran - Self - Archivist
 * Brian Eastman - Self - First Producer
 * Christopher Gunning - Self - Composer
 * Stan Lauryssens - Self - Belgian Crime Writer
 * Freddy Thielemans - Self - Mayor of Brussels
 * Pascal Hyde - Self - local historian, Ellezelles, Belgium
 * David Boulter - Self - Producer
 * Sean Pertwee - Self - Actor
 * Tom Vaughan - Self - Director
 * Brian Farnham - Self