The ABC Murders is a surprising novel tackling the modern figure of the serial killer and the psychology behind it. There’s a serial killer on the loose, working his way through the alphabet – and the whole country is in a state of panic. A is for Mrs Ascher in Andover, B is for Betty Barnard in Bexhill, C is for Sir Carmichael Clarke in Churston. With each murder, the killer is getting more confident – but leaving a trail of deliberate clues to taunt the proud Hercule Poirot might just prove to be the first, and fatal mistake. The ABC Murders, a three-part retelling of Christie’s 1936 classic and adapted by Sarah Phelps, sees John Malkovich in the lead as Hercule Poirot, with Rupert Grint (Harry Potter, Sick Note), Andrew Buchan (Broadchurch, The Honourable Woman), Eamon Farren (Twin Peaks, Chained), Tara Fitzgerald (Game of Thrones), Bronwyn James (Harlots) and Freya Mavor (The Sense of an Ending.) BAFTA-nominated writer Phelps returns to explore the 20th century through Christie’s work. “Set in the seething, suspicious early 1930s, ABC Murders is a brutal story of violence and lies, the long shadow of the past and the slaughter to come,” said Phelps. “At its center, one of the most familiar, famous characters in crime fiction. We may all think we know Poirot, but do we really know Hercule?”