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Captain Arthur Hastings
Captain Arthur J. M. Hastings, OBE, is a fictional character created by Agatha Christie as the companion-chronicler and best friend of the Belgian detective, Hercule Poirot. He is first introduced in Christie's 1920 novel ''The Mysterious Affair at Styles'' (originally written in 1916) and appears as a character in seven other Poirot novels, including the final one '' Curtain: Poirot's Last Case'' (1975), along with a play and many short stories. He is also the narrator of several of them. Literary function Hastings is today strongly associated with Poirot, due more to the television adaptations than to the novels. Many of the early TV episodes of ''Agatha Christie's Poirot'' were adaptations of short stories, in most of which he appeared in print. A few were stories into which he had been adapted (for example, ''Murder in the Mews''). In Christie's original writings, however, Hastings is not in every short story or novel. He is not a character in either ''Death on the Nile'' ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hugh Fraser (actor)
Hugh Fraser (born 23 October 1945) is an English actor, theatre director and author. He is best known for his portrayal of Captain Hastings in the television series ''Agatha Christie's Poirot'' opposite David Suchet as Hercule Poirot and for his role as the Duke of Wellington (replacing David Troughton) in the '' Sharpe'' television series. Fraser was born in Westminster but grew up in the Midlands. He studied acting at the Webber Douglas Academy of Dramatic Art and the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art. Fraser's first big break came after portraying Anthony Eden in the 1978 television series '' Edward & Mrs. Simpson'', with Edward Fox, after which he was frequently cast as upper class or aristocratic characters, such as Mr Talmann in Peter Greenaway's ''The Draughtsman's Contract''. Early life Born in Westminster in 1945, but brought up in the Midlands, Hugh Fraser studied acting at the Webber Douglas Academy of Dramatic Art and the London Academy of Music and D ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Death On The Nile
''Death on the Nile'' is a work of detective fiction by British writer Agatha Christie, published in the UK by the Collins Crime Club on 1 November 1937 and in the US by Dodd, Mead and Company the following year. The UK edition retailed at seven shillings and sixpence (7/6)Chris Peers, Ralph Spurrier and Jamie Sturgeon. ''Collins Crime Club – A checklist of First Editions''. Dragonby Press (Second Edition) March 1999 (Page 15) and the US edition at $2.00. The book features the Belgian detective Hercule Poirot. The action takes place in Egypt, mostly on the River Nile. The novel is unrelated to Christie's earlier short story of the same name, which featured Parker Pyne as the detective. Synopsis While on holiday in Aswan to board the steamer ''Karnak'', set to tour along the Nile River from Shellal to Wadi Halfa, Hercule Poirot is approached by successful socialite Linnet Doyle née Ridgeway. She wants to commission him to deter her former friend Jacqueline de Bellefo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Eton College
Eton College () is a public school in Eton, Berkshire, England. It was founded in 1440 by Henry VI under the name ''Kynge's College of Our Ladye of Eton besyde Windesore'',Nevill, p. 3 ff. intended as a sister institution to King's College, Cambridge, making it the 18th-oldest Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference (HMC) school. Eton is particularly well-known for its history, wealth, and notable alumni, called Old Etonians. Eton is one of only three public schools, along with Harrow (1572) and Radley (1847), to have retained the boys-only, boarding-only tradition, which means that its boys live at the school seven days a week. The remainder (such as Rugby in 1976, Charterhouse in 1971, Westminster in 1973, and Shrewsbury in 2015) have since become co-educational or, in the case of Winchester, as of 2021 are undergoing the transition to that status. Eton has educated prime ministers, world leaders, Nobel laureates, Academy Award and BAFTA award-winning actors, and ge ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lloyd's Of London
Lloyd's of London, generally known simply as Lloyd's, is an insurance and reinsurance market located in London, England. Unlike most of its competitors in the industry, it is not an insurance company; rather, Lloyd's is a corporate body governed by the Lloyd's Act 1871 and subsequent Acts of Parliament. It operates as a partially-mutualised marketplace within which multiple financial backers, grouped in syndicates, come together to pool and spread risk. These underwriters, or "members", are a collection of both corporations and private individuals, the latter being traditionally known as "Names". The business underwritten at Lloyd's is predominantly general insurance and reinsurance, although a small number of syndicates write term life insurance. The market has its roots in marine insurance and was founded by Edward Lloyd at his coffee house on Tower Street in 1688. Today, it has a dedicated building on Lime Street which is Grade I listed. Traditionally business is tr ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ariadne Oliver
Ariadne Oliver is a fictional character in the novels of Agatha Christie. She is a mystery novelist and a friend of Hercule Poirot. Profile Mrs Oliver often assists Poirot in his cases through her knowledge of the criminal mind. She often claims to be endowed with particular "feminine intuition", but it usually leads her astray. She is particularly fond of apples, which becomes a plot point in the novel ''Hallowe'en Party''. In the books, Oliver's most famous works are those featuring her vegetarian Finnish detective Sven Hjerson. Since she knows nothing of Finland, Oliver frequently laments Hjerson's existence. In many of her appearances, Oliver – and her feelings toward Hjerson – reflect Agatha Christie's own frustrations as an author, particularly with the Belgian Hercule Poirot (an example of self-insertion). The self-caricature has also been used to discuss Christie's own follies in her earlier novels. For instance, in ''Mrs McGinty's Dead'', Mrs Oliver talks of having ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Agatha Christie's Fictional Universe
In Agatha Christie's mystery novels, several characters cross over different sagas, creating a fictional universe in which most of her stories are set. This article has one table to summarize the novels with characters who occur in other Christie novels; the table is titled Crossovers by Christie. There is brief mention of characters crossing over in adaptations of the novels. Her publications, both novels and short stories, are then listed by main detective, in order of publication. Some stories or novels authorised by the estate of Agatha Christie, using the characters she created, and written long after Agatha Christie died, are included in the lists. Her novels under the pen name Mary Westmacott and her nonfiction books are not covered in this article. One notable example of characters from one novel appearing in another is the novel ''The Pale Horse'', which featured no fewer than five cross-over characters: Ariadne Oliver, Major Despard and his wife Rhoda (all had previous ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Adventure Of The Christmas Pudding
''The Adventure of the Christmas Pudding and a Selection of Entrées'' is a short story collection written by Agatha Christie and first published in the UK by the Collins Crime Club on 24 October 1960.Chris Peers, Ralph Spurrier and Jamie Sturgeon. ''Collins Crime Club – A checklist of First Editions''. Dragonby Press (Second Edition) March 1999 (p. 15) It is the only Christie first edition published in the UK that contains stories with both Hercule Poirot and Miss Marple, the writer's two most famous detectives. It retailed in the UK for twelve shillings and sixpence (12/6) and comprises six cases. It was not published in the US although the stories it contains were published in other volumes there. Plot summaries The Adventure of the Christmas Pudding, or The Theft of the Royal Ruby Poirot is asked by a Mr Jesmond, who is acting as an intermediary to an eastern prince, to help that unfortunate young man with a problem he is having. The prince is due soon to be married to a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Inspector Lestrade
Detective Inspector G. Lestrade, or Mr. Lestrade ( or ), is a fictional character appearing in several of the Sherlock Holmes stories written by Arthur Conan Doyle. Lestrade's first appearance was in the first Sherlock Holmes story, the novel ''A Study in Scarlet'', which was published in 1887. The last story in which he appears is the short story "The Adventure of the Three Garridebs", which was first published in 1924 and was included in the last collection of Sherlock Holmes stories by Doyle, ''The Case-Book of Sherlock Holmes''. Lestrade is a determined but conventional Scotland Yard detective who consults Sherlock Holmes on many cases, and is the most prominent police character in the Sherlock Holmes series. Lestrade has been played by many actors in adaptations based on the Sherlock Holmes stories in film, television, and other media. Appearances in canon Lestrade is also mentioned in the novel ''The Sign of the Four'' (1890), though he doesn't appear in it. Fiction ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Chief Inspector Japp
Inspector James Japp (later Chief Inspector Japp) is a fictional character who appears in several of Agatha Christie's novels featuring Hercule Poirot. Creation Inspector Japp was inspired by the fictional police detective Inspector Lestrade from the Sherlock Holmes stories by Arthur Conan Doyle. Christie even modelled Japp after the "ferret-like" qualities of Lestrade. In the first novel in which Japp appears, ''The Mysterious Affair at Styles'', he is described as a "ferret-faced man", which is similar to the description of Lestrade as a "ferret-like man" in Doyle's 1891 short story "The Boscombe Valley Mystery". Appearances Japp has been depicted in seven novels written by Christie, all featuring Hercule Poirot: *''The Mysterious Affair at Styles'' (1920) *The Big Four (novel), ''The Big Four'' (1927) *''Peril at End House'' (1932) *''Lord Edgware Dies'' (1933), also known as ''Thirteen at Dinner'' *''Death in the Clouds'' (1935), also known as ''Death in the Air'' *''The A.B ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
