The Mystery of the Blue Train (Agatha Christie's Poirot episode)

The Mystery of the Blue Train is the first episode of series ten of Agatha Christie's Poirot, broadcast on 1 January 2006. The feature-length episode is an adaptation of the Agatha Christie novel of the same name. It was written by Guy Andrews and directed by Hettie Macdonald.

Synopsis
While travelling on the Blue Train between Calais and Nice, Poirot gets mixed up in the investigation of the brutal murder of American heiress Ruth Kettering, and the disappearance of her fabulous ruby, the 'Heart of Fire'. Who is the culprit? Poirot interviews the girl's father, her maid, her estranged husband, her eccentric cousins, and a raft of other strange passengers, as he pieces together the tragic story.

Cast

 * David Suchet as Hercule Poirot
 * Georgina Rylance as Katherine Grey
 * James D'Arcy as Derek Kettering
 * Jaime Murray as Ruth Kettering
 * Elliott Gould as Rufus Van Aldin
 * Alice Eve as Lenox Tamplin
 * Nicholas Farrell as Major Knighton
 * Bronagh Gallagher as Ada Mason
 * Josette Simon as Mirelle
 * Oliver Milburn as Armand de la Rochefour
 * Tom Harper as Corky
 * Roger Lloyd Pack as Caux
 * Jane How as Woman at the Ball
 * Samuel James as Steward
 * Helen Lindsay as Sister Rosalie
 * Etela Pardo as Dolores
 * Lindsay Duncan as Lady Tamplin

Uncredited actors

 * Andy Callaghan as Champagne Waiter
 * Gareth McChlery as Dancer
 * Russell Lotten as Waiter

Comparison with Original Novel

 * Just like in the original novel, Richard Knighton falls in love with Katherine Grey. However, Ada Mason is jealous so she tries to kill Katherine. She is later stopped by Lenox Tamplin. While this happened, Derek Kettering was in prison; this makes Poirot know that Derek wasn't the culprit of Ruth's murder.
 * In the original novel, Mirelle is Derek Kettering's lover. In the episode, Mirelle is renamed Mirelle Milesi. Her character is kept loosely; here she is a dancer at Parthenon (as in the original novel) but she is Rufus Van Aldin's lover. This gives Mirelle a further motive for killing Ruth Kettering.
 * In the novel, Major Knighton is exposed as the murderer. Only Rufus Van Aldin is there to hear Poirot's evidence that Knighton is the culprit; while the episode's ending features all the suspects reunited on the Train Bleu; here, Poirot exposes Ada Mason first, then accuses Knighton as Ada's accomplice.

Filming Locations

 * Villa Maria Serena, 21 Promenade Reine Astrid, 06500 Menton, France
 * Sheraton Grand London Park Lane Hotel, Piccadilly, London
 * Mill Road Bridge, Nene Valley Railway
 * Paris-Gare-de-Lyon, Pl. Louis-Armand, 75012 Paris
 * Nene Valley Railway (Wansford, Station), Wansford Station, Stibbington, Peterborough
 * Viaduct of Chamborigaud, France
 * Fine Arts Museum / Carnolès Palace, 3 Av. de la Madone, Menton, France
 * Rue de Bréa, Menton, France
 * Basilica of Saint Michael Archangel, Place de l'Eglise, Menton, France
 * Circe Restaurant Beaulieu-sur-Mer, 2 Av. Fernand Dunan, 06310 Beaulieu-sur-Mer, France