BBC Agatha Christie drama heads to 1066 Country

The one-off drama, commissioned for BBC One, is to be a adaption of the Poirot novel 'The ABC Murders'.

Much of the novel is set in Bexhill, and the production team confirmed there will be crews filming in the town towards the end of the shoot.

Due to start filming this month, John Malkovich will play Hercule Poirot leading a cast including Broadchurch actor Andrew Buchan, Tara Fitzgerald and Rupert Grint - best known for playing Ron Weasley in the Harry Potter films.

The drama is to be made by production company Mammoth Screen in partnership with Agatha Christie Limited.

Executive Producer and CEO of Agatha Christie Limited James Prichard said: “The ABC Murders is one of my great grandmother’s most unsettling and intense stories and Hercule Poirot one of her most intriguing characters.

"I am humbled by the quality of cast we have lined up for the show and I am most excited to experience the unique approach John Malkovich will bring to the role in this thrilling one-off television adaptation.”

The novel has been adapted for the screen by BAFTA nominated writer Sarah Phelps.

Set during the 1930s, Ms Phelps' script sees Poirot face a serial killer known only as A.B.C. First the killer strikes in Andover, then Bexhill. As the murder count rises, the only clue is the copy of The ABC Railway Guide at each crime scene.

Ms Phelps, who is also an executive producer, said: “Set in the seething, suspicious early 1930s, The ABC Murders is a brutal story of violence and lies, the long shadow of the past and the slaughter to come. At its centre, one of the most familiar, famous characters in crime fiction. We may all think we know Poirot but do we really know Hercule?”