Poirot and me

Poirot
Character Notes (by David Suchet)

1. Belgian! NOT French!

• Drinks Tisane(s) - hardly ever tea which he calls "The English Poison". Will drink coffee - black only.
• Has 4 lumps of sugar in tea and coffee - sometimes 3. Once or twice 5!
• Wears pointed, tight very shiny patent leather shoes.
• Bows a great deal - even when shaking hands.
• Hates to fly. Makes him feel sick
• Hates traveling by water. Uses the "so excellent Laverguier method" to prevent sea-sickness.
• Regards his mustaches as a thing of perfect beauty and uses a scented pomade.
• Order and method are his "God"s.
• A man of faith and morals. Always reads his Bible. Regards himself as "Un bon Catholique".
• A great thinker who says he has "undoubtedly the foxiest brain in Europe".
• Likes neatness - can't tolerate a mess or anything disorderly. Even untidy trays.
• Conceited professionally - but not as a person.
• Loves his work and genuinely believes he is the best in the world. He would and expects everyone to know him.
• Dislikes publicity.
• A real "Towny". Dislikes the country and is grateful to artists who paint the countryside. "It avoids the necessity to venture therein". He feels uneasy in the country.
• A great 'Twinkler". Has very "twinkly eyes" (green!!)
• Likes people.
• Always wears a hat when going out into the evening air.
• Does not like the English aristocracy or the inheritance of riches. He thinks the English are unnecessarily romantic. He is definitely NOT a romantic - or so he would like to think!
• Will always take his mustache grooming solid silver set with him when traveling.
• Very particular over his appearance.
• Carries a "Turnip face" pocket watch (silver).
• Always wears a separate collar - wing collar.
• Lives in London. Telephone number is TRA8137 (Trafalgar No)
• Will always stand when a lady enters or leaves a room - similarly when a lady sits down to table or gets up from table.
• An excellent listener. Often disconcertingly silent. Lets other people do the talking.
• Dislikes Marmalade - takes only Jam (confiture) for breakfast on small squares of toast. Each square being perfect.
• Wishes that he had married.
• Sometimes uses a pocket notebook.
• A PASSION for tidiness and will always straighten objects if crooked or unsymmetrical.
• He likes furniture, rooms, fireplaces to be square. He does not like living with round objects.
• His appearance (including hair) is always immaculate. His nails groomed and shined.
• Ganil silk dressing gown- very resplendent.
• His slippers are embroidered,
• Will always tidy and clean his room before his valet or cleaner arrives.
• Will always tidy a room before anyone or guest enters.
• Smokes tine black Russian cigarettes from a cigarette case (silver).
• Relies on his "little grey cells".
• Relies on the head within, not on the senses senses without.
• Will often sit quickly, shut his eyes and just think.
• Will often have boiled eggs for breakfast. If more than one then they must be the same size or he really can't eat them!
• Enjoys and is grateful for Hastins inability to grasp the facts.
• Thinks Hastings to be a good judge of character except where women are concerned. "As I always tell to you Hastings - I see nothing".
• Uses and is very proud of his walking stick/cane.
• Will always brush his hair "tenderly" before leaving his flat.
• When dissatisfied, restless, frustrated or angry will make the sound of a cat sneezing "Tchat"
• Can't abide being or feeling untidy. A speck of dust on his clothes "as painful as a bullet wound".
• HATES to be overdrawn at the bank.
• He desperately tries to keep his bank balance at 444 pounds 4 shillings 4 pence. Simply because of the perfect symmetry of the numbers.
• Dislikes gambling - thinks it is a human evil.
• Likes inspector Japp.
• Hardly likes any other British Police or detectives.
• Dislikes "ill manners".
• Doesn't like the English "reserve". Thinks the English are mad.
• After putting a log on the fire - will always wipe his hands on a small duster placed on a nail next to the fireplace. Prefers to use old gloves though, for the purpose.
• Used to head the Belgian detective zone.
• Will occasionally, though not often use disguise. But only if necessary.
• Has a most charming geniality but can also be as cold as ice.
• His piercing eyes see right into the heart of a person. No one can lie to him and get away with it. A wonderful listener.
• Very good with servants and working classes. Never patronizes them.
• HATES the English class system.
• Always carries his professional card.
• Sees himself as a "specialist" professional detective. Titles himself to a Harley street specialist.
• Will usually wear a morning suit when waking at home - like a Harley street specialist.
• A kind man - not stringy at all. Very wealthy.
• Once fell in love with an English girl who used to cook him fluffy omelets.
• Nearly always will drink Sirop de Cassis as an aperetif or an after dinner drink.
• Loves good food and wine.
• In the short story "The Dream" p. 146 - he replaced hшs pocket watch for his feist watch.
• His taste in art is somewhat Bourgeois. Likes the opulant and florid.
• Always brushes his coat before venturing outside.
• He will never explain until the end. "It is not my habit to explain until the end - it is reached".
• Meticulous and very concentrated with everything he does.
• Women find him very sympathetic. "A dear little man", says Cynthia in "Mysterious affair at Styles".
• If he sees a matchstick on a flowerbed - he will bury it!!!
• Rarely shows his emotions and yet dislikes the English reserve. Sometimes though with his arms raised he will utter "Oh la la".
• Often shrugs with the sound "Pugh".
• Never or very rarely says "Mon Dieu". But often will exclaim "Milles tonnerres!"
• Will utter "CHUT" instead of "Ssh".
• Has little regard for imagination. "Imagination is a good servant and a bas master. The Facts, Hastings, the Facts".
• Hastings says of him "For about ten minutes he would sit in deadly silence, perfectly still except for several expressive motions of his eyebrows. His eyes closed. Suddenly a leave, a sign of relief - his eyes would open glowing a bright green, he would then smile and then it was over".
• He enjoys his "little ideas". This became a catchword.
• He often often straightens Hastings tie. He will remove a ladies brush and replace it because it was put in crooked.
• When he hasn't got his lighter, will light his small Russian cigarettes with a match which he will then place in a small pottery pot.
• Cynthia from "Mysterious affair at Styles" says: "He's such a dear little man! But he is funny!"
• Hastings: "Sometimes I feel sure he is as mad as a hatter and then just as he is in his madness I find there is a method in his madness".
• Likes to build houses of cards. "Non, mon ami. I am not in my second childhood. I steady my nerves, that is all. This employment requires precision of the fingers. With precision of the fingers goes precision of the brain".
• Genuinely believes that the happiness of one man and one woman is the greatest thing in all the world".
• "In the little grey cells of the brain lies the solution of every mystery".
• Always drinks a hot chocolate before going to sleep.
• Dislikes golf.
• Will wipe dirty seats or benches with his handkerchief before sitting down.Similarly when kneeling on the floor.

Sitting quietly alone together, Sheila and I also ask each other what exactly it is that makes Poirot so special to so many millions of people around the world. After a little thought, we agree that our son-in-law, Elliott, Katherine's husband, summed it up beautifully when he explained to us not long ago that what makes Poirot so appealing, enduring and timeless as a man is that he possesses one of the finest and clearest moral compasses of any fictional character. Somehow, Elliott explains, we would all like to be him, to have his clarity and moral strength. Sheila and I agree: that lies at the very heart of his appeal.