Agatha Christie, They Watched

Warning: SPOILERS!   Austin Trevor, probably the most miscast Poirot in cinema history, stars in “Lord Edgware Dies.” This version came out about five years after the introduction of sound, and it looks and sounds like it. Is it still watchable? Let’s fine out!   “Agatha Christie, They Watch” reviews the adaptations of Agatha Christie’s novels in their order of publication.   Teresa Peschel, autho...

Warning: SPOILERS!   This is our last version of “Love from a Stranger”! This time it’s the German TV version from 1967. Based on the short story “Philomel House” and a play Christie wrote, the play was rewritten by Frank Vosper but published with his sole credit.   “Agatha Christie, They Watch” reviews the adaptations of Agatha Christie’s novels in their order of publication.   Teresa Peschel, au...

Warning: SPOILERS!   We’re back to Agatha Christie this week. We’re watching “Love from a Stranger.” Based on the short story “Philomel House” and a play Christie wrote, the play was rewritten by Frank Vosper but published with his sole credit.   “Agatha Christie, They Watch” reviews the adaptations of Agatha Christie’s novels in their order of publication.   Teresa Peschel, author of "Agatha...

Warning: SPOILERS! To mark the publication of “The Complete, Annotated Clouds of Witness,” we’re rewatching the five episode “Clouds of Witness.” Lord Peter Wimsey (Ian Carmichael) Bertie Woosters his way through a murder inquiry in which his brother, the Duke of Denver, is accused of murdering his sister’s fiancé. Watch Wimsey tangle with the locals in Yorkshire, fall into bogs, chase a socialist...

Warning: SPOILERS! We’re back to Agatha Christie this week. We’re watching “Love from a Stranger.” Based on the short story “Philomel House” and a play Christie wrote, the play was rewritten by Frank Vosper but published with his sole credit. We’ll also talk about the movie, starring Basil Rathbone and Ann Harding, and a young Joan Hickson (“Miss Marple”) as the daffy maid. “Agatha Christie, They...

Warning: SPOILERS! We’ve reached the end of the road with Agatha Christie’s “Peril at End House.” We had not seen the Lithuanian version from 1981, and it’s on YouTube with AI-translated subtitles. After watching four versions, would we recognize what they’re doing here? Would it make any sense at all? “Agatha Christie, They Watch” reviews the adaptations of Agatha Christie’s novels in their order...

Warning: SPOILERS! Here’s the fourth version of Agatha Christie’s “Peril at End House,” and in the first season of the French “Les Petits Meurtres d’Agatha Christie” we see the Poirot character of Inspector Larosiere prove that there’s no fool like an old fool. “Agatha Christie, They Watch” reviews the adaptations of Agatha Christie’s novels in their order of publication. Teresa Peschel, author of...

Warning: SPOILERS! In our third look at “Peril at End House,” we turn to the Japanese anime “The Great Detectives Poirot and Marple.“ This version in three half-hour episodes, introduces children to Agatha Christie. We have Poirot and Hastings, but we also have Mabel West. She’s the daughter of playwright Raymond West, visits Miss Marple and wants to be a detective. She and her pet duck, Oliver, a...

Warning: SPOILERS!   In our second look at “Peril at End House,” we turn to the “Agatha Christie’s Poirot” episode and found it a stylish, visually stunning adaptation. But does the story hold up?   “Agatha Christie, They Watch” reviews the adaptations of Agatha Christie’s novels in their order of publication.   Teresa Peschel, author of "Agatha Christie, She Watched" and the "Inter...

Warning: SPOILERS! Or, as they call it, “Puzzle at End House.” Anatoliy Ravikovich plays the high-fiving, ice-cream loving Poirot who inserts himself into a young woman’s life who experiences life-threatening events. Can he stop the peril in time or will it be too perilous? “Agatha Christie, They Watch” reviews the adaptations of Agatha Christie’s novels in their order of publication. Teresa Pesch...

Warning: SPOILERS! If you've been waiting for GOOD version of "The Sittaford Mystery", you won't go wrong with "Charlie Chopra and the Mystery of Solang Valley" from 2023. It's a marvel: a quintessential English closed circle mystery set at a snowbound manor transferred to an Indian closed circle mystery set at a snowbound manor. You'll recognize the story, the...

Warning: SPOILERS! Next in “The Sittaford Mystery” adaptations is the 2006 French episode from “Le Petites Meurtres d'Agatha Christie.” “Murderous Melodies turns Captain Trevelyan into a pop singer with a cute singing girlfriend, the evil record company owner, the old songwriter, a leather-clad guitarist named Marlon, a dorky keyboard player and the shrewish secretary. Plus, Swan Laurence (Sam...

Warning: SPOILERS! We move on to “The Sittaford Mystery, the 2008 ITV version that adds Miss Marple (Geraldine McEwan) and Timothy Dalton as Clive Trevelyan. Why did ITV hire Dalton to play a character who dies in the first chapter? Let’s find out. “Agatha Christie, They Watch” reviews the adaptations of Agatha Christie’s novels in their order of publication. Teresa Peschel, author of "Agatha...

Warning: SPOILERS! This is the last “Black Coffee,” and it’s the 1985 Italian TV version. The screen quality is poor and the subtitles are AI, but is it still fun to watch? Let’s find out. Oh and thanks to John Hisman for providing us with these movies. Check out his YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/@HRJafael “Agatha Christie, They Watch” reviews the adaptations of Agatha Christie’s novels...

Warning: SPOILERS! This week, we discuss the West German version of “Black Coffee,” a play Agatha Christie wrote using her Hercule Poirot character. AI generated subtitles. “Agatha Christie, They Watch” reviews the adaptations of Agatha Christie’s novels in their order of publication. Teresa Peschel, author of "Agatha Christie, She Watched" and the "International Agatha Christie, Sh...

Warning: SPOILERS! We move on to “Black Coffee,” which was a play Agatha Christie wrote using her Hercule Poirot character. A French studio made what appears to be an unauthorized version. Once believed lost, it has reappeared and someone applied AI subtitles to it. “Agatha Christie, They Watch” reviews the adaptations of Agatha Christie’s novels in their order of publication. Teresa Peschel, auth...

Warning: SPOILERS! Our final look at Agatha Christie’s “The Murder at the Vicarage” comes from the 1970 TV version. The subtitles were created by AI, so we’ll find out if we can understand the plot. “Agatha Christie, They Watch” reviews the adaptations of Agatha Christie’s novels in their order of publication. Teresa Peschel, author of "Agatha Christie, She Watched" and the "Interna...

Warning: SPOILERS! “The Protheroe Affair” from the French TV series “Les Petits Meurtes d’Agatha Christie” (or “Agatha Christie’s Criminal Games”) moves from the village church to the big-city advertising agency. But Protheroe is still a jerk, murder most foul takes place, and it’s up to Inspector Swan Laurence, faithful secretary Marlene, and reporter Alice Avril to puzzle it out. “Agatha Christi...

Warning: SPOILERS! In the second go-round for TV’s Miss Marple, Geraldine McEwan looks back at the young man she left behind during World War I. We also get Derek Jacobi (“Brother Cadfeld,” “I, Claudius”) playing the nasty Col. Protheroe; Mark Gatiss (“The Big Four,” “Sherlock”) as a young Rev. Hawes, and Rachael Stirling (“Five Little Pigs,” “The Detectorists”) as Rev. Clement’s wife. How does th...

Warning: SPOILERS! The first Miss Marple novel was published 96 years ago, so we’re looking at the great Joan Hickson in “Murder at the Vicarage.” How cozy and comforting is this version and how close does it play to the novel? Bill and Teresa will hash it out for you. “Agatha Christie, They Watch” reviews the adaptations of Agatha Christie’s novels in chronological order. Teresa Peschel, author o...

Warning: SPOILERS!   No one, including Agatha Christie herself, liked “The Big Four.” The first novel after her 11-day disappearance and the trauma of her collapsing marriage was assembled from her short stories to meet her publisher’s deadline. Poirot takes on a worldwide conspiracy led by four sinister villains, including a Chinaman! How did scriptwriters Ian Hallard and Mark(“Sherlock”) Gatiss...

Warning: SPOILERS! In her autobiography, Agatha Christie said she thought less of a reader who loved “The Mystery of the Blue Train.” She wrote it to meet her publisher’s deadline, and finishing it made her realize that she was a professional writer, not a housewife who wrote. Teresa and I look at the “Agatha Christie’s Poirot” adaptation of “Blue Train,” starring Elliot Gould. This precursor cont...

Warning: SPOILERS! “The Mystery of the Seven Dials” — Agatha Christie’s pastiche of P.G. Wodehouse’s Bright Young Things and John Buchan thrillers — gets the Netflix treatment in this lavish 3-part series written by Doctor Who writer/producer Chris Chibnell. We get race-swapped characters, a healthy dose of White Guilt, some girlbossing, and changes in the story. We investigate the extent of the c...

Warning: SPOILERS! It’s Agatha Christie meet P.G. Wodehouse’s Drones Club in “The Seven Dials Mystery,” a TV movie from 1981. True, James Warwick (34) was too old to play a Bright Young Thing, and Cheryl Campbell (31) to play “Bundle” Brent, but they were game in this tale of espionage, secret societies, high living, and murder. Teresa Peschel, author of "Agatha Christie, She Watched" and the "Int...

Warning: SPOILERS! If you haven’t read “The Murder of Roger Ackroyd,” do yourself a favor and stop here and read it. You’ll thank us later. “Checkmate” (2022) is the first official adaptation of Agatha Christie’s stories. Situ Yan is an idealistic lawyer and when behind-the-scenes machinations sets an assassin free (think “Murder on the Orient Express”), he’s left holding the bag. His train trip t...