Get the fake moustache and three-piece suit ready –Sex Education’s Edward Bluemel has been announced as the star of the BBC’s new Agatha Christie series, making him the youngest actor to play Hercule Poirot.
The 33-year-old, who played Maeve Wiley’s (Emma Mackey) brother Sean in the Netflix comedy, will portray the iconic Belgian detective in the Beeb’s new six-part series Hercule.
The drama – billed as “an intimate study of Hercule the man and an epic portrait of Britain between the wars” – will follow Poirot’s early years, charting cases that took place before the much-loved character became a well-known sleuth.
It will also explore his early encounters with Scotland Yard and his burgeoning friendship with Arthur Hastings.
Bleumel said: “I feel very lucky to have been trusted with such an iconic character who has been played by so many great actors. I can’t wait to continue Hercule’s legacy.”
Lindsay Salt, the director of BBC Drama, added: “Hercule Poirot is one of the greatest and most loved characters of all time, and bringing him back to the BBC is a real privilege.
“From the first moments of Edward’s audition we knew we’d found the perfect actor for Hercule, with a performance that feels both fresh and exciting, yet quintessentially Agatha Christie’s Hercule Poirot. We can’t wait for viewers to meet him.”
Christie’s famous detective featured in more than 30 of the writer’s novels – selling more than 750 million copies – as well as two plays and 51 short stories.
Over the years, Poirot has been portrayed on both the silver and small screens by multiple big names, with Sir Kenneth Branagh, now 65, recently taking on the role in three films, which he also directed: 2017’s Murder on the Orient Express, Death on the Nile (2022) and A Haunting in Venice (2023).
Prior to that, Sir David Suchet famously played the sleuth in ITV’s long-running Agatha Christie’s Poirot. He was 42 when he landed the part.
The series was created with the help of Christie’s grandson, Mathew Prichard, who previously ran Agatha Christie Limited, the company that controls the rights to the author’s work.
Matthew’s son and Christie’s great-grandson, James Prichard, is now the company’s executive producer and will work on the BBC’s latest production.
“My father had the privilege of working with David Suchet for nearly 25 years, and I now have the good fortune of being able to share my great-grandmother’s brilliant stories with a new generation of viewers,” he said, hailing Bluemel as “an extremely talented performer and will make a great addition to the long line of actors that have played this celebrated character”.
Bluemel’s other credits include the BBC Two series We Might Regret This and Amazon Video’s historical romance My Lady Jane.
