In the novel Death in the Clouds, Madame Giselle (real name Marie Angélique Morisot) was a French moneylender. She was murdered with a poison dart onboard the flight from Paris to Croydon Airport.
Madame Giselle was one of the best-known moneylenders in Paris, and carried on her business at the Rue Joliette, No. 3, which was also her private residence. She travelled to England fairly frequently, as many of her clients were English people from the upper and professional classes.
Madame Giselle had her own intelligence service, and would collect as many facts as she could about her clients, before lending them large sums of money. If they refused to pay back what they owed her, the information she held would be published, or given to the person concerned. However, according to her own code, she was scrupulously honest, and did not use her knowledge to obtain money from anyone, unless it was already owed to her. She had also instructed her maid, Elise Grandier, to destroy all her business documents if anything ever happened to her.
Madame Giselle had a large fortune, estimated to be eight or nine million francs. She left a small legacy to her maid, and everything else to her daughter, Anne Morisot. She had no friends or other relations.
Elise described Madame Giselle as being very kind, giving money to the Little Sisters of the Poor and charitable organisations, and paying for Georges' wife to go to a hospital in the country when she was ill. Madame Giselle had also been kind to Elise herself. When Elise was deceived and had her savings stolen, Madame Giselle arranged for Elise's baby daughter to be brought up by some good people on a farm.
Madame Giselle had married George Leman in Quebec, in 1910. He left her soon after the marriage, and she resumed her maiden name. Their daughter was received at the Institut de Marie in Quebec. Madame Giselle left Quebec soon after, and returned to France.
At some point, Madame Giselle suffered from smallpox, and was ill for a long time. When she recovered, her looks were gone, and by the time of the flight of the Prometheus, she was described as being "frightfully ugly".
Portrayals[]
In the ITV TV adaptation which formed part of the TV series Agatha Christie's Poirot, Madame Giselle was portrayed by Eve Pearce. Here her name was slightly changed to Marie Giselle.