British actor David Suchet is best known as Agatha Christie's moustache- twirling detective Hercule Poirot, a role he championed for 25 years (1989-2013). He is now widely regarded as one of England's finest stage, screen and TV actors.
While David has become the definitive version of Poirot, there's a lot more to this talented actor than solving mysteries.
Read on to find out all about David's life, his family and how Poirot changed him.
Who has David Suchet played?
David Suchet has been a stalwart of British stage and screen for fifty years. From Shakespeare to Oscar Wilde, Freud to Poirot, Edward Teller to Doctor Who, Harold Pinter to Terence Rattigan, Questions of Faith to Decline and Fall, right up to 2019's The Price, David has done it all. But he didn't always believe he'd be such a success.
"In the early days of my career, I didn't think I stood a hope in hell. Look at me: I'm short, stocky, slightly overweight, deep of voice, passionate, dark haired, olive skinned, hardly your typical Englishman. What chance did I have, going into the world of British theatre?"
David became a company member of the Royal Shakespeare Company in 1973 where he evolved into one of its most dominant players. His masterful work in television roles includes portrayals of historical, biblical, entertainment and fictional figures.
David is most famous for playing the iconic part of Agatha Christie's Poirot. He also starred as Edward Teller in Oppenheimer as well as Augustus Melmotte in The Way We Live Now.
"I remember in drama school an actor called Ronald Lacey said if you can last 10 years in the acting business you’ve done well so to be here over 50 years and still be busy is a real privilege," says David. "I don’t think I will ever retire. I think one day the phone will just stop ringing.
"I believe when you decide you want to be an actor you have to be clear why you want to be an actor. Be clear it’s not for fame, money or self-aggrandisement but work out exactly why you want to do it."
David Suchet would love to star in a Poirot movie
The role of Poirot has been taken on by various actors in both TV and film adaptations, including John Malkovich as an older but wiser Hercule Poirot in BBC One's The ABC Murders(2018). While David has admitted to missing playing Poirot, who he fondly refers to as his best friend, he doesn't plan to return to this TV favourite, though he would be up for portraying the beloved character in a film.
Speaking on This Morning, he said: "I'd do the movie but I wouldn't do another television show. But I'd do the movie. I'd love to do that."
As to what he learnt from the iconic sleuth, David says, "Over the years of playing Poirot he taught me to always respect everyone’s dignity and how to listen properly. He says 'I listen to what you say and I hear what you mean' and this has always stayed with me. While I was playing him, I’d often find myself in real life thinking ‘what would Poirot do in this moment?’ and even now I find I can still put his glasses on to see the world through his eyes."
Speaking about the way he played the role of Poirot David adds, "I had my brief and I wanted to do it as [Agatha] wrote it and I studied and studied and studied.
"I knew what he would wear on certain occasions. And when I wasn't allowed to do that, because they wanted to do something different, I said 'Well, no, if I'm going to be Agatha Christie's Poirot I must be him in totally and not just in part."
How old is David Suchet?
David was born on May 2nd 1946 to actress Joan Patricia Jarché and renowned Lithuanian-Jewish obstetrician and gynecologist Jack Suchet.
Is David Suchet related to John Suchet?
Yes. You may recognise David’s older brother and broadcaster John Suchet from ITV and BBC news as well as the Early Evening News.
Who is David Suchet’s wife?
David married his wife Sheila Ferris in 1976. The two met whilst they were both working at the Belgrade Theatre, Coventry. David admits he fell in love with Sheila as soon as he saw her but it did take a while for him to persuade her to go out for a meal with him.
"I’ve been married to my wife Sheila for over 40 years and I believe the secret is that we take the lows with the highs, accept that the most difficult mountains you have to climb are those that forge your relationship - not the champagne dinners - and that we laugh a lot," says David.
The couple has a son and daughter, Robert and Katherine, and three grandchildren.
"I hope and pray that I will be given a long enough life that my young grandchildren will get to know me in the same way I got to know my grandfather as I’d love to have some influence on them in the same way I was so affected by him. I think grandchildren teach you an innocence we should all learn."
Has David Suchet released an audio bible?
David was raised without a religion but later baptised into the Church of England. In 2014, he released an audio recording of The Bible’s New International Version.
Has David Suchet done any documentaries?
As well as religious documentaries such as his 2012 documentary, David Suchet: In the Footsteps of St Paul and 2015’s In the Footsteps of St Peter, he has also presented David Suchet on the Orient Express.
David Suchet is also a keen boater
"I have a great love for restoring old canals," says David. "It’s because I used to live on a narrow boat and would tour England in it to go to wherever I was working.
"In that time, all the people on the canals were so kind and looked after me so well I always said if I ever become well-known enough to help I will support canals and their restoration."
How tall is David Suchet?
He is 5’9.
What are David Suchet’s Desert Island Disks?
As well as two Mozart pieces, David’s Desert Island Disks are made up of Christopher Gunning’s Theme to Poirot, Frankie Vaughan’s You’ll Never Walk Alone, Take Five by Dave Brubeck, Nat King Cole’s When I Fall in Love and Tchaikovsky’s Concerto in D Major.
Where is David Suchet from?
David was born in London.
David Suchet's photography
"My grandfather Jimmy first sparked my interest in photography when I was a boy and he taught me it’s all about how you see something rather than what you see.
"Now I think you can learn a lot about me by looking at the photographs I take as they show you how I see the world."
Throughout this spectacular career, David has never been without a camera, enabling him to vividly document his life in photographs. Seamlessly combining photo and memoir, David's latest book, Behind the Lens, is the story of David's remarkable life, showcasing his wonderfully evocative photographs and accompanied by his insightful and engaging commentary.
In Behind the Lens, David discusses his London upbringing and love of the city, his Jewish roots and how they have influenced his career, the importance of his faith, how he really feels about fame, his love of photography and music, and his processes as an actor. He looks back on his fifty-year career, including reflections on how the industry has changed, his personal highs and lows, and how he wants to be remembered. And, of course, life after Poirot and why he's still grieving for the eccentric Belgian detective.
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