Updating Agatha Christie’s Hercule Poirot: Sophie Hannah

The crime writer Agatha Christie remains the best-selling novelist of all time even though her death was over 40 years ago. Her fictional detective Hercule Poirot has attained legendary status, so for a modern novelist to breathe new life into the character is a considerable challenge. However, the English psychological crime author Sophie Hannah has been doing just that. In 2014 she wrote her first novel using Poirot as the central character and she is now preparing her third Poirot novel for publication, entitled “The Mystery of Three Quarters”.

Taking over another author’s character is a complex business. Sophie has to work with the Christie estate and make sure that they and her publishers are happy with the way the novel progresses - and most importantly, ends.

Felicity Finch has been following Sophie during the process of completing the novel and this programme gives a unique insight into the last days of the author’s work on the draft manuscript. We’ll hear how Sophie writes and have access to her discussions with her publisher. How do these shape her creative process - and will she be able to solve the problem of how to create a satisfactory ending?

Produced by Felicity Finch and Emma Kingsley for BBC World Service.

(Photo: author Sophie Hannah. Credit: Onur Pinar)