Teresa and Bill Review The Secret Adversary (1983): the Agatha Christie Adaptation Era Begins

For the first episode of the third series of “Agatha Christie’s Poirot,” we jump back to the middle of World War I and the village of Styles St. Mary. There, Captain Hastings, recovered from his wounding in the trenches, relaxes with his friends at Styles. Days of tea on the lawn, tennis, horseback riding, maybe the possibility of a romance. Then, a tragic death in the middle of the night lead to him calling on his friend Hercule Poirot for help.Teresa Peschel, author of "Agatha Christie, She Watched" and the "International Agatha Christie, She Watched," discusses the TV episode with her husband, technical adviser, and straight man, Bill Peschel. Together, they are Peschel Press, publisher of intriguing, intelligent, and idiosyncratic books, including "The Complete, Annotated Man in the Brown Suit."Mentioned in the episode:Unique Devon Tours: https://www.uniquedevontours.com/ Future episodes:Oct. 30 at 11:30 a.m. Eastern, we'll discuss the "Agatha Christie's Criminal Games" episode "The Mysterious Affair at Styles." Available on Amazon Prime (MHz Choice subscriptionrequired although there is a free 7-day trial): https://www.amazon.com/Agatha-Christies-Criminal-Games/dp/B07KM54442 Nov. 6 at 11:30 a.m. Eastern, we'll discuss the avant-garde Hungarian version of "The Mysterious Affair at Styles" which can be seen on YouTube:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4yBpN-BcpkE

Teresa Peschel, author of "Agatha Christie, She Watched" and the "International Agatha Christie, She Watched," discuss "The Secret of Chimneys," the 2010 episode of "Agatha Christie's Marple" starring Julia McKenzie.Joining Teresa is her husband, technical adviser, and straight man, Bill Peschel. Together, they are Peschel Press, publisher of intriguing, intelligent, and idiosyncratic books.

"Les Petits Meurtres d'Agatha Christie," also known as "The Little Murders of Agatha Christie" or "Agatha Christie's Criminal Games" (it's complicated) ran from 2009 to 2023. It is set in three eras (it's complicated) featuring three separate casts (more complicated) and the episodes range from faithful adaptations to the merest smidgen of relationship to AC. There's even a musical episode! This time, we're looking at season two's adaptation of "The Man in the Brown Suit." Sir Eustace has dropped the title and is the gay assistant to the director of the Lille Opera. Travel and adventure has been dropped in favor of toe shoes and Russian spies. But the hunt for the mysterious Mr. Brown is still there, renamed the Colonel, so that's something.Teresa Peschel, author of "Agatha Christie, She Watched" and the "International Agatha Christie, She Watched," discusses the TV episode with her husband, technical adviser, and straight man, Bill Peschel. Together, they are Peschel Press, publisher of intriguing, intelligent, and idiosyncratic books, including "The Complete, Annotated Man in the Brown Suit."

Today we're discussing "The Man in the Brown Suit" the 1989 TV movie starring Stephanie Zimbalist, Tony Randall, and Edward Woodward. For those of us who remember the '80s, this is a time capsule. Will it work for you?Joining Teresa is her husband, technical adviser, and straight man, Bill Peschel. Together, they are Peschel Press, publisher of intriguing, intelligent, and idiosyncratic books.

Teresa Peschel, author of "Agatha Christie, She Watched" and the "International Agatha Christie, She Watched," discuss "The Secret Adversary," the 2015 version starring David Walliams and Jessica Raine.  This time, Tommy's a failed beekeeper and his 10-year marriage to Tuppence leads us to wonder how much they despise each other. Can they keep it together AND battle a Soviet assassin?Joining Teresa is her husband, technical adviser, and straight man, BillPeschel. Together, they are Peschel Press, publisher of intriguing,intelligent, and idiosyncratic books.

Teresa Peschel, author of "Agatha Christie, She Watched" and the "International Agatha Christie, She Watched," discuss "The Secret Adversary," the 1983 TV movie starring Francesca Annis and James Warwick. This is the second TV adaptation the estate permitted, and the future of Christie on the screen hung in the balance. Did they succeed?Joining Teresa is her husband, technical adviser, and straight man, Bill Peschel. Together, they are Peschel Press, publisher of intriguing, intelligent, and idiosyncratic books.

Teresa Peschel, author of "Agatha Christie, SheWatched" and the "International Agatha Christie, She Watched," discuss "The Secret Adversary," the 1929 German silent movie. This movie set the pattern for future Christie adaptations, for good and otherwise.Joining Teresa is her husband, technical adviser, and straight man, Bill Peschel. Together, they are Peschel Press, publisher of intriguing, intelligent, and idiosyncratic books.

Warning: Spoiler-Free for the first 10 minutes; spoiler-heavy review afterwards! Teresa and Bill Peschel are talking about mysterious mediums, a wise child, post-war traumas, and water in the basement, a LOT of water in the basement. It’s “A Haunting in Venice,” the 2023 Hercule Poirot movie starring Sir Kenneth Branaugh in his third outing as Poirot and Tiny Fey as Ariadne Oliver.  Sponsored by Peschel Press, the publisher of annotated Agatha Christie novels by Bill Peschel.   Support Peschel Press! Visit our website to learn about our Complete, Annotated Line of Agatha Christie novels: https://peschelpress.com/the-peschel-press-complete-annotated-series/   Look for “Agatha Christie, She Watched,” our a coffee-table sized book and ebook (not coffee-table sized) collection of Teresa's reviews of 201 Agatha adaptations. Learn more at https://peschelpress.com/teresa-peschels-agatha-christie-movie-reviews/   Chapters 0:00 Introduction SPOILER-FREE ZONE 10:07 SPOILER ZONE BEGINS with the “Nemesis” connection 12:32 Poirot in retirement 14:56 Incidents that pay off later in the movie 19:12 A motif borrowed (from “Peril at End House” which I forgot to mention) 25:16 Tina Fey as Ariadne Oliver: Hit or miss? 28:29 A deeply felt movie

Warning: Spoiler-heavy review! This week, we’re talking about a night at the opera, comical assassinations, suitcase nukes, and seaside resorts. Teresa and Bill Peschel from Peschel Press discuss “N or M?” from 2015 starring David Walliams and Jessica Raine as Tommy and Tuppence Beresford.   Sponsored by Peschel Press, the publisher of annotated Agatha Christie novels by Bill Peschel.   Support Peschel Press! Visit our website to learn about our Complete, Annotated Line of Agatha Christie novels: https://peschelpress.com/the-peschel-press-complete-annotated-series/   Look for “Agatha Christie, She Watched,” our a coffee-table sized book and ebook (not coffee-table sized) collection of Teresa's reviews of 201 Agatha adaptations. Learn more at https://peschelpress.com/teresa-peschels-agatha-christie-movie-reviews/   Chapters 0:00 Introduction 6:18 Teresa speculates about the Tommy and Tuppence story arc 14:41 An overview of the story 18:13 Shenanigans right out of “I Love Lucy” 21:36 The guests at the Sans Souci 26:30 More missed opportunities 32:20 The problem with casting

Warning: Spoiler-heavy review! This week, we’re talking about queen bees, Soho whorehouses, sugar millionaires, and Commie infiltration. Teresa and Bill Peschel from Peschel Press discuss “The Secret Adversary” from 2015 starring David Walliams and Jessica Raine as Tommy and Tuppence Beresford.   Sponsored by Peschel Press, the publisher of annotated Agatha Christie novels by Bill Peschel.   Support Peschel Press! Visit our website to learn about our Complete, Annotated Line of Agatha Christie novels: https://peschelpress.com/the-peschel-press-complete-annotated-series/   Look for “Agatha Christie, She Watched,” our a coffee-table sized book and ebook (not coffee-table sized) collection of Teresa's reviews of 201 Agatha adaptations. Learn more at https://peschelpress.com/teresa-peschels-agatha-christie-movie-reviews/   Chapters 0:00 Introduction 6:30 A change in era 8:52 Bad beekeeping 14:48 Tommy attempts to join the intelligence community 16:18 The fake sugar millionaire and his sugar cookie 19:21 The deadly assignation and an adult Albert 23:52 The missed opportunities for a good story