Boynton is brough to life with energy and verve by the fabulous Tim Curry, last seen on Masterpiece in Return to Cranford.

Lord Greville Boynton's lifelong quest to discover the resting place of the head of John the Baptist is on it's latest stop in Syria, where his family and a host of interested onlookers converge on the dig site to witness Boynton's hoped-for archaeological triumph. Will Poirot give up in frustration or will the voices of his little grey cells sing out and solve the case? David Suchet stars as Hercule Poirot in this adaptation of the novel by Agatha Christie, joined by Tim Curry ( Return to Cranford). How can Poirot make sense of a murder when most of the suspects weren't even present at the time of death? Poirot's investigation exposes red herrings, broken personalities and a tragic back story buried deep. When most of the camp returns from an expedition, they find Lady Boynton has been stabbed to death. A curious array of onlookers has also gathered in the unforgiving desert heat - among them the tormented Boynton children, a psychiatrist, a nun, a travel writer and a cerebral but not exactly rugged Belgian detective, Hercule Poirot. Impassioned archaeologist Lord Greville Boynton, accompanied by his universally despised wealthy second wife Lady Boynton, is in zealous pursuit of a major artifact in Syria. :) That said, here's the film summary from the PBS website: However, in this case, I'm able to pretty much enjoy the film version 'as is,' despite the fact that I think Christie's story is much better than this reworked version. Following the recent trend of completely rewriting - and in many cases butchering - Christie's original stories, Appointment deviates substantially from the original novel. Not only is it packed with a first-rate cast, but the novel is one of my favorites, and the setting is FABULOUS. I really looked forward to the latest adaptation of Appointment with Death on Masterpiece Mystery.

She had such a gift for bringing the land, people, and history, dripping with mysterious possibilities, to vibrant, colorful life in her books. Agatha Christie's Middle Eastern-set mysteries have always ranked among my favorites of her work.

An appointment with death poirot