“I miss him in my life because he was my life for 25 years and I’ve lost my best friend.” He said: “As a human being, losing your real family is always painful, but my saddest day as an actor was filming Poirot’s death. Sir David also described saying goodbye to Poirot in 2013 as like losing his “best friend”. “I’m sure that were I to see it, there would be hundreds of things to say that would be complimentary.” Albert Finney also played the role (Michael Stephens/PA) “It protects me and it keeps me from saying anything that might be derogatory. He said: “Every journalist would like me to say what I think about Branagh, but the reason I haven’t watched Ken – and I have enormous admiration for him as an actor – is that people ask me what I think of the ‘newest, greatest Poirot’ and if I’ve never seen him, it’s best that I don’t have an opinion.

However, Sir David told Radio Times that, despite being a fan of Sir Kenneth’s work, he had avoided watching his performance in order to protect himself. Sir Kenneth Branagh at the premiere of Murder On The Orient Express at the Royal Albert Hall (Ian West/PA)Īctor and director Sir Kenneth, 60, debuted in the role in the 2017 film version of Murder On The Orient Express and is due to reprise the part in Death On The Nile, which has been delayed to 2022 due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Other stars who have taken on the role include Albert Finney, who earned an Oscar nomination for his 1974 film version of Murder On The Orient Express, and John Moffatt, who voiced Poirot in a radio version for the BBC. Veteran actor Sir David, 74, played the fictional Belgian detective in the British TV series between 19. Sir David Suchet says he has not watched Sir Kenneth Branagh’s take on Hercule Poirot to protect himself from saying anything “derogatory” about his performance.

Death on the nile with david suchet