Eleanor Black talks with British crime writer Sophie Hannah, who has just published her fourth Hercule Poirot novel with the blessing of Agatha Christie's estate.
Why do we find murder stories so comforting?
In day-to-day life people are often puzzling over things and trying to work things out. It's
one of our strongest motivations. If we knew the answer to every question we wouldn't have the motivation to get out of bed. In real life, we never know if we're going to get a solution. The great thing about the mystery genre is that it acknowledges the importance to human beings of looking for answers and it is a genre with a built-in guarantee of an answer. It's not that people are obsessed with the murder, it's that they want to read a mystery where the stakes are high.
What do you particularly like about Hercule Poirot?
I read all of the Agatha Christie books between the ages of 12 and 14. I just think he is the best fictional detective there is – he's brilliantly clever but he's also very sweet and funny, he has all these funny mannerisms. He is instantly unforgettable as soon as you encounter him. I would never in a million years have had the idea that I should write Hercule Poirot novels; my agent had the idea.
Poirot is the most popular Christie detective, with Miss Marple a close second. What is your view on Tuppence and Tommy? Underrated?
I love them, I really love them. Not all the books they feature in are among Agatha's best but I do love them as characters and By the Pricking of My Thumbs is amazing for what it is, which is a mystery/adventure. I quite identify with Tuppence, she's the kind of mystery solver I would be. I can imagine myself heading off into a situation that could be dangerous. They would probably be next on my list after Poirot – oh, no Ariadne Oliver would be next. I love Mrs Oliver.
The new crime writing Masters degree you teach at Cambridge University sounds like a dream.
It is. One of the things I love about it is that we get to teach and learn in the most beautiful building called Madingley Hall, which is like something out of an Agatha Christie novel. We're in rooms with big mullioned windows, with views of beautiful lawns with topiary and knot gardens. It's just heaven. Unfortunately, we had just done the first module and the pandemic happened.
