A Hercule Poirot play, by Agatha Christie. When Ms. Christie's agent saw the script of the play, in the summer of 1929, he told her that the play was not good enough to be staged. She ignored his "constructive criticism" and the play was first staged at the Embassy Theatre in Swiss Cottage, London. The play was well received by the viewing public and moved a year later to London's West End, where it ran for several months at St. Martin's Theatre. Hercule Poirot was played by Francis L. Sullivan, and his sidekick, Captain Hastings, was played by Roland Culver.
The film version of Black Coffee was released in 1931, with Austin Trevor in the role of Hercule Poirot.
In 1997, Charles Osborne, who had once played Dr. Carelli in a stage production of Black Coffee, convinced Agatha Christie's estate to allow him to craft the play into novel format, essentially producing a "new" Agatha Christie novel 20 years after her death.
The plot of the play is, as mysteries go, basic. A scientist who works on chemical devices (remember, this play was released in 1929, before the advent of nuclear warfare) suspects someone in his household is trying to steal his work. He calls Poirot to come to his estate outside of London. Before Poirot arrives, the scientist is killed when someone slips poison into his black coffee. Wackiness ensues, red herrings abound, and the killer is discovered before the end of the play. As usual, it is one of the last people to suspect, which means the killer should be obvious to spot. Black Coffee is an interesting work and if you are a fan of mysteries, quite a good story.