Hercule Poirot is approached by a frightened middle-aged lady called Alice Pengelley (played by Amanda Walker) who lives in the Cornish village of Polgarwith. She suspects her husband, the local dentist Edward Pengelley (played by Jerome Willis), is trying to kill her by slow poisoning her with weed killer. She is taken ill after meals, although she is fine whenever he is away, and has spotted a half empty tin of the poison, which the gardener swears he hasn't used. Poirot and Captain Hastings agree to come down to Polgarwith on the following day, but when they arrive she is dead. Alice's maid is convinced that Edward is guilty since she claims to have caught him with the weed killer and how he was startled when she spotted him with it. Meanwhile, Alice's arrogant GP, Dr Adams (played by Derek Benfield), swears she was suffering from gastritis and will not be swayed from his original diagnosis. It transpires that Alice's niece, Freda (played by Chloe Salaman), is engaged to be married to the local gentleman's outfitter Jacob Radnor (played by John Bowler) and that she had quarrelled with her aunt because she had been infatuated with him herself. In addition, Alice's will leaves her £2000 to be held in trust until she is forty while her husband gets the residue of her estate estimated to be worth £20,000. Poirot and Hastings return to London. Hastings is convinced that Edward is guilty and will surely be arrested and charged with his wife's murder before long. Whilst Poirot concurs that Edward will soon be in the dock, he believes him to be innocent and that he and his friend will have to clear his name and find the real killer. Sure enough, Edward is promptly arrested and charged and Poirot and Hastings return to Cornwall but are none the wiser as to which dogged Yard man it is who thinks that he has an open and shut case this time. It is? Yes! Chief Inspector Japp (played by Philip Jackson), of course...
All in all, The Cornish Mystery is another excellent addition to this acclaimed series. David Suchet, by now, had firmly established himself as the definitive Poirot effortlessly portraying his eccentricities and mannerisms. As ever he is complemented by the fine supporting performances of his co-stars, Hugh Fraser, Pauline Moran and Philip Jackson as his closest friends and associates Captain Hastings, Miss Lemon and the Scotland Yard man Chief Inspector Japp. In this instance, Hastings and Miss Lemon gently poke fun at Poirot's vanity whilst he insists that he is a man who is modest about his abilities as a detective. This is charming to watch as is Japp's belief that he is going to have a simple clear cut case this time until he is surprised to find that Poirot has been on to it the whole time. It certainly looks as though Edward Pengelley will be found guilty and sentenced to death as the trial is going firmly against him. Only, Poirot succeeds in trapping the real culprit by forcing him to sign a written confession in return for giving him a twenty-four hour head start to escape before he hands it over to the police. Hastings is flabbergasted, believing that his old friend has allowed sentiment to get the better of his judgement this time. Poirot replies that it is simply a case of realism since he has no hard evidence against this person. Naturally, Poirot has no intention of honouring such a bargain with a ruthless killer. And, in a hilarious finale, he hands the confession to the clerk at the court who then gets the trial adjourned whilst Japp, none the wiser, is rubbing his hands in glee in belief that he has got the right man this time. Then, as Poirot and Hastings are driven away to the train station, an astonished Police Constable runs over to hurriedly tell Japp what has happened. Naturally, he is left fuming that he has been proved wrong by his old friend yet again and must now launch a manhunt to bring the perpetrator to justice. The acting from the rest of the cast is truly superb too with John Bowler standing out as the young and somewhat untrustworthy Jacob Radnor whilst Chloe Salaman is noteworthy as Freda as are Jerome Willis as the framed man and Amanda Walker as his ill-fated wife. It is well directed by Edward Bennett, who made several excellent episodes for this series, and the costumes, lighting and settings all have precisely the right touch creating a strong sense of place and period.
All in all, The Cornish Mystery is another excellent addition to this acclaimed series. David Suchet, by now, had firmly established himself as the definitive Poirot effortlessly portraying his eccentricities and mannerisms. As ever he is complemented by the fine supporting performances of his co-stars, Hugh Fraser, Pauline Moran and Philip Jackson as his closest friends and associates Captain Hastings, Miss Lemon and the Scotland Yard man Chief Inspector Japp. In this instance, Hastings and Miss Lemon gently poke fun at Poirot's vanity whilst he insists that he is a man who is modest about his abilities as a detective. This is charming to watch as is Japp's belief that he is going to have a simple clear cut case this time until he is surprised to find that Poirot has been on to it the whole time. It certainly looks as though Edward Pengelley will be found guilty and sentenced to death as the trial is going firmly against him. Only, Poirot succeeds in trapping the real culprit by forcing him to sign a written confession in return for giving him a twenty-four hour head start to escape before he hands it over to the police. Hastings is flabbergasted, believing that his old friend has allowed sentiment to get the better of his judgement this time. Poirot replies that it is simply a case of realism since he has no hard evidence against this person. Naturally, Poirot has no intention of honouring such a bargain with a ruthless killer. And, in a hilarious finale, he hands the confession to the clerk at the court who then gets the trial adjourned whilst Japp, none the wiser, is rubbing his hands in glee in belief that he has got the right man this time. Then, as Poirot and Hastings are driven away to the train station, an astonished Police Constable runs over to hurriedly tell Japp what has happened. Naturally, he is left fuming that he has been proved wrong by his old friend yet again and must now launch a manhunt to bring the perpetrator to justice. The acting from the rest of the cast is truly superb too with John Bowler standing out as the young and somewhat untrustworthy Jacob Radnor whilst Chloe Salaman is noteworthy as Freda as are Jerome Willis as the framed man and Amanda Walker as his ill-fated wife. It is well directed by Edward Bennett, who made several excellent episodes for this series, and the costumes, lighting and settings all have precisely the right touch creating a strong sense of place and period.