Step Aside, Poirot: The BBC’s New Detective Drama Puts Agatha Christie at the Centre of Real-Life Murders
Agatha Christie is stepping out from behind the typewriter and into the role of amateur detective in the BBC’s upcoming mystery series The Detection Club.
The new 10-part drama is set in 1930s London and centres on three of Britain’s most celebrated crime writers: Agatha Christie, Dorothy L. Sayers and G.K. Chesterton. Inspired by their lives, friendship and work, the series imagines what might happen if the creators of some of fiction’s greatest detectives had the opportunity to investigate murders themselves.
With its combination of literary history, period drama and classic whodunit intrigue, The Detection Club offers a fresh take on the golden age of detective fiction.
What is The Detection Club about?
Set against the glamour and social change of 1930s London, The Detection Club follows Christie, Sayers and Chesterton as they develop their craft within the secretive world of a mysterious London society.
Their lives take an unexpected turn when an invitation leads the trio into their first real murder investigation. From there, the writers find themselves working together to unravel a succession of mysteries.
Their amateur investigations also bring them into contact with D.I. Greenway, a young police detective who is determined to prove himself. His efforts are alternately helped and hindered by the remarkable instincts of the three writers.
The BBC describes the series as a story about what might happen if the people responsible for creating some of the most famous fictional detectives were given the chance to solve crimes themselves.
Writer and executive producer Kit Lambert said the central idea behind the drama is: “What if the creators of our greatest fictional detectives had the chance to solve murders themselves?”
Lambert added that the series is a celebration of Christie, Sayers and Chesterton, drawing inspiration from their writing, their lives and their friendship. He also praised the cast assembled for the production.
Who stars in The Detection Club?
The drama brings together a cast of familiar faces to play its three literary protagonists and the young detective caught up in their investigations.
Bryony Hannah, known for Call the Midwife and Rivals, plays Agatha Christie. Miles Jupp, whose credits include Belgravia: The Next Chapter and Napoleon, takes on the role of G.K. Chesterton.
Cara Theobold, best known for Downton Abbey and The Syndicate, plays Dorothy L. Sayers, while Viraj Juneja, who has appeared in Little English and Get Duked!, portrays D.I. Greenway.
The BBC has also released an image of Hannah as Christie alongside Jupp as Chesterton and Theobold as Sayers, offering a first glimpse of the trio together.
Theobold is particularly familiar to Downton Abbey viewers, having played Ivy Stuart in the period drama.
Bryony Hannah on playing Agatha Christie
Hannah said she was excited by the opportunity to explore a side of Christie that audiences rarely see.
“Agatha Christie is the best-selling novelist of all time; and yet I knew very little about the woman behind the pen,” the actor said.
According to Hannah, The Detection Club provides an opportunity to present Christie from a different perspective, allowing viewers to see more of her personality beyond her reputation as a hugely successful crime writer.
She said she was looking forward to exploring Christie’s “wit, intellect and flaws” with the production team.
Who created the series?
The Detection Club comes from writer and executive producer Kit Lambert, whose previous work includes the popular cosy crime series Father Brown and the detective drama Cooper & Fry.
The new series aims to put a different spin on the familiar mystery format by combining fictionalised investigations with three real figures from the history of British crime writing.
Rather than following one of Christie’s famous fictional detectives, the story places Christie herself at the centre of the action, alongside Sayers and Chesterton.
When will The Detection Club be released?
The BBC has not yet announced a release date for The Detection Club.
Production is scheduled to take place across the West Midlands, with additional casting details expected to be announced in due course.
For now, the confirmed cast includes Miles Jupp as G.K. Chesterton, Bryony Hannah as Agatha Christie, Cara Theobold as Dorothy L. Sayers and Viraj Juneja as D.I. Greenway.
More Agatha Christie dramas to watch on BBC iPlayer
For viewers looking for more Christie mysteries while waiting for The Detection Club, several adaptations are available to stream on BBC iPlayer.
Ordeal by Innocence
When wealthy philanthropist Rachel Argyll, played by Anna Chancellor, is murdered at her family estate, her adopted son Jack Argyll, portrayed by Anthony Boyle, is arrested for the crime.
Eighteen months later, Rachel’s widower is preparing to marry again when questions surrounding the murder resurface. The identity of the killer is thrown into doubt, reopening a case that appeared to have been settled.
And Then There Were None
Ten people are invited to an isolated island off the south coast of England by a mysterious host. Bad weather soon leaves them cut off from the outside world.
Then the guests begin dying one by one, with each death following the pattern of the nursery rhyme “Ten Little Soldier Boys.” As their numbers dwindle, the survivors are forced to work out who is responsible before it is too late.
Murder Is Easy
While travelling to the picturesque village of Wychwood under Ashe, Nigerian attaché Fitzwilliam, played by David Jonsson, receives a disturbing warning from Miss Pinkerton, portrayed by Penelope Wilton.
She tells him that a killer is operating in the area. When Miss Pinkerton is later found dead while travelling to Scotland Yard, Fitzwilliam decides to investigate for himself and uncover the murderer before another victim is claimed.
With The Detection Club, the BBC is taking viewers back to the world of 1930s crime writing while giving three of the era’s most influential authors a role they never had in real life: solving murders of their own.