Poirot and the Regatta Mystery

Poirot and the Regatta Mystery is a 1936 short story written by Agatha Christie which was first published in Canada in Star Weekly, 2 May 1936, in the USA in The Chicago Tribune, 3 May 1936, and in the U,K. in The Strand Magazine in June of the same year. Thereafter, Christie rewrote the story to feature Parker Pyne instead of Poirot and called the new story The Regatta Mystery. The original Poirot version was not published again until 2008 when it was included in the omnibus volume "Hercule Poirot: The Complete Short Stories".

Synopsis

A diamond merchant and his party step off their yacht to enjoy the festivities at shore. But when the youngest member of the party, Eve Leathern, decides to play a trick with a £30,000 diamond named “the Morning Star”, the fun suddenly escalates into a dramatic jewel theft. The most suspected member of the party begs Hercule Poirot to solve the disappearance of the valuable gem, pleading that he is not the thief. But if he isn’t, who is?

Plot summary

(may contain spoilers - click on expand to read)

Characters

• Hercule Poirot
• Isaac Pointz
• Leo Stein
• Sir George Marroway
• Lady Pamela Marroway
• Samuel Leathern
• Eve Leathern
• Mrs Janet Rustington
• Evan Llewellyn
• The Amalfi gang

Locations

• Dartmouth
  • Royal George Hotel (perhaps inspired by the Royal Castle Hotel at Dartmouth)

Film, TV, or theatrical versions

Largely forgotten and now usually known as a Parker Pyne story, the original Poirot version was not adapted in the ITV series Agatha Christie's Poirot although the stated intention was to dramatize every story.

Publication history

• 1936: Star Weekly, 2 May 1936.
• 1936: The Edmonton Bulletin, 2 May 1936.
• 1936: Chicago Tribune, 3 May 1936.
• 1936: The Hartford Courant, 3 May 1936.
• 1936: The Province, 16 May 1936, as "Regatta Mystery, a Hercule Poirot Story".
• 1936: The Strand Magazine, Issue 546, June 1936 - with illustrations by Jack M. Faulks.
• 1943: Poirot and the Regatta Mystery, Vallencey Press, 1943.
• 1943: Poirot on Holiday, Todd Publishing, 1943. One of two stories.
• 1946: Poirot Lends a Hand, Polybooks, March 1946. One of three stories.
• 2008: Hercule Poirot: The Complete Short Stories.

The story was later rewritten by Christie to change the detective from Hercule Poirot to Parker Pyne before its first book publication in the US in The Regatta Mystery and Other Stories in 1939.