Ordeal By Innocence casting

BBC’s latest Agatha Christie adaptation starts filming

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UPDATE

Filming has now officially begun on Ordeal By Innocence, this Christmas’ Agatha Christie adaptation for the BBC. The following was posted by Sarah Phelps on Twitter this morning…

Last week, we ran the following story about the drama’s announcement…

Following the hugely successful adaptations of And Then There Were None in December 2015, and The Witness For The Prosecution last Christmas, the BBC is clearly on a roll when it comes to lavish adaptations of Agatha Christie novels. So much so, in fact, that it’s commissioned another.

It’s been announced that a three-part adaptation of Ordeal By Innocence will start filming in Scotland this month, with Sarah Phelps adapting Christie’s book for the screen. It’s the same team behind the two recent adaptations who are handling this one, and a quality cast has been assembled.

The ensemble is led by Bill Nighy and Catherine Keener, with Matthew Goode, Eleanor Tomlinson, Anthony Boyle, Ed Westwick, Luke Treadaway, Morven Christie, Crystal Clarke, Ella Purnell and Alice Eve all aboard too.

The official BBC press announcement lists the following synopsis…

Christmas 1954. Wealthy philanthropist Rachel Argyll is murdered at her family estate Sunny Point.Her adopted son Jack Argyll, a young delinquent, is arrested for her murder. He vehemently protests his innocence.

Eighteen months later, Dr Arthur Calgary, a scientist, walks onto the velvety lawns of Sunny Point claiming to have just returned from an expedition to the Arctic. Even more extraordinary is his claim to hold the alibi that can prove Jack’s innocence. But Jack died in prison before the case could come to trial, and the Argyll family is reluctant to dig up the secrets of the past.

Rachel’s widower Leo is about to remarry his secretary Gwenda and none of Rachel’s other adopted children Mary, Mickey, Tina or Hester, nor longstanding housekeeper Kirsten, is willing to reopen that most horrendous chapter of their lives. However, the shattering implications of Calgary’s story are too big to avoid; if he is telling the truth then the wrong person was arrested for Rachel’s murder. And if Jack was not the killer, then it must have been somebody else at Sunny Point.

The production deal between BBC One and Agatha Christie Limited is far from done, either. In all, seven adaptations are planned. That should keep us going for a few Christmases…