Hercule Poirot is the efficient Belgian detective created by mystery writer Dame Agatha Christie. With his signature moustache carefully trimmed and waxed, Poirot uses his little gray cells (brains) to solve the most baffling crimes. Despite some disappointing earlier attempts to bring the character to the screen, the all-star film of Murder On The Orient Express became a hit with Albert Finney as Poirot. A subsequent series of films and made-for-TV films featured Peter Ustinov. Among Christie fans, however, David Suchet, who played the part in a successful British TV series is considered the definitive Poirot.Upon Agatha Christie's death, in 1976, the New York Times published a picture of the famous detective on the front page along with his obituary ... the only fictional person to enjoy such an honor. source:Masterpiece Mystery! PBS