kids encyclopedia robot

David Suchet facts for kids

Kids Encyclopedia Facts
Quick facts for kids

David Suchet

David Suchet.jpg
Suchet in 2006
Born
David Courtney Suchet

(1946-05-02) 2 May 1946 (age 78)
Paddington, London, England
Alma mater London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art
Occupation Actor
Years active 1969–present
Spouse(s)
Sheila Ferris
(m. 1976)
Children 2
Parent(s)
  • Jack Suchet (father)
Relatives
  • John Suchet (brother)
  • James Jarché (grandfather)

Sir David Courtney Suchet CBE (/ˈsʃ/; born 2 May 1946) is an English actor known for his work on stage and in television. He portrayed Edward Teller in the television serial Oppenheimer (1980) and received the RTS and BPG awards for his performance as Augustus Melmotte in the British serial The Way We Live Now (2001). International acclaim and recognition followed his performance as Agatha Christie's detective Hercule Poirot in Agatha Christie's Poirot (1989–2013), for which he received a 1991 British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) nomination.

Early life and family

Suchet was born in the Paddington area of London, the son of Jack Suchet and his wife Joan Patricia (née Jarché; 1916–1992), an actress. Jack emigrated from South Africa to England in 1932, trained to be a physician at St Mary's Hospital Medical School, London, in 1933, and became an obstetrician and gynaecologist.

Suchet's father was of Lithuanian-Jewish descent, the son of Izidor Suchedowitz, originally from Kretinga in the Pale of Settlement of the Russian Empire. At some point, the family name was recorded as "Schohet", a Yiddish word (from Hebrew shochet) defining the profession of kosher butcher. Suchet's father changed his surname to Suchet while living in South Africa. David's mother was born in England and was Anglican (she was of Russian-Jewish descent on her father's side, and English Anglican on her mother's side). He was raised without religion, but became a practising Anglican in 1986, and was confirmed in 2006.

Suchet and his brothers, John and Peter, attended Grenham House boarding school in Birchington-on-Sea, Kent; then, after attending another independent school, Wellington School in Somerset, he took an interest in acting and joined the National Youth Theatre at the age of 16. He trained and graduated from the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art, where he later became a vice president, retiring in 2018.

Career

Theatre

Suchet began his acting career at the Gateway Theatre, Chester (1969), and then appeared in many reps, including Worthing, Birmingham, Belgrade Theatre, Coventry, Liverpool Playhouse, and the Watermill Theatre. In 1973, he joined the Royal Shakespeare Company. In 1981–82, he played Bolingbroke in Richard II opposite Alan Howard. In 1993 he played "John" in the drama Oleanna at the Royal Court Theatre. It was directed by Harold Pinter, and co-starred Lia Williams as "Carol". He made his West End debut opposite Saskia Reeves in the Kempinski play Separation, at the Comedy Theatre in 1987. In 1996–97 he played opposite Dame Diana Rigg in the West End production of Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? He was also featured as Salieri from 1998 to 2000 in the Broadway production Amadeus. In 2007, at the Chichester Festival Theatre, he played Cardinal Benelli in The Last Confession, about the death of Pope John Paul I. In 2014, he reprised the role of Benelli in the Australian tour of the play.

He has been starring as Lady Bracknell in The Importance of Being Earnest by Oscar Wilde at the Vaudeville Theatre in London since June 2015 and on tour. In January 2022, Suchet had a three-week residency at the Harold Pinter Theatre performing Poirot and More, A Retrospective.

Television and film

In 1988, Suchet played Leopold Bloom in the Channel 4 documentary The Modern World: Ten Great Writers, in which some of James Joyce's Ulysses was dramatised. The year 1988 also saw Suchet appear as Yves Drouard in the penultimate episode of the television series Tales of the Unexpected.

In 1989, he took the title role of Hercule Poirot for the long-running television series Agatha Christie's Poirot. In his book, Poirot and Me, Suchet mentions that prior Poirot actor Sir Peter Ustinov one day approached him and told him that Suchet could play Poirot and would be good at it. Suchet then spoke to Brian Eastman from ITV, who sent him some of the novels to read. "And as I did so, it slowly dawned on me that I'd never actually seen the character I was reading about on the screen...He was quite, quite different: more elusive, more pedantic and, most of all, more human than the person I'd seen on the screen." Still unsure, Suchet rang his brother John, who advised him against it, calling Poirot "a bit of a joke, a buffoon. It's not you at all." Suchet took his brother's advice as a challenge and accepted the role. In preparation, he wrote a five page character study of Poirot detailing 93 different aspects of his life. Suchet said he took the list on set with him and "gave a copy to every director I worked with on a Poirot film." Suchet went on to play the role in adaptations of every novel and short story featuring the character written by Agatha Christie.

In 2001, he had the lead role in the David Yates-directed BBC television serial The Way We Live Now and, in April 2002, he played the real-life barrister George Carman in the BBC drama Get Carman: The Trials of George Carman QC.

In 2003, Suchet starred as the ambitious Cardinal Wolsey in the two-part ITV drama Henry VIII opposite Ray Winstone as Henry VIII and Helena Bonham Carter as Anne Boleyn. In May 2006, he played the role of the fallen press baron Robert Maxwell in Maxwell, a BBC2 dramatisation of the final 18 months of Maxwell's life. During the same year, he voiced Poirot in the adventure game Agatha Christie: Murder on the Orient Express.

At Christmas 2006, he played the vampire hunter Abraham Van Helsing in a BBC adaptation of Bram Stoker's novel Dracula. He appeared in the disaster film Flood, released in August 2007, as the Deputy Prime Minister of the United Kingdom at a time when London is devastated by flooding. Suchet appeared on daytime-TV chat show Loose Women on 6 February 2008 to talk about his film The Bank Job, in which he played Lew Vogel, alongside Jason Statham and Saffron Burrows. In 2008, he took part in the genealogy documentary series Who Do You Think You Are?.

He starred in the 2009 CBC made-for-TV film Diverted. He starred as the main antagonist, Reacher Gilt, in the 2010 Sky TV adaptation of Going Postal, based on Pratchett's book of the same name. He appeared in the film Act of God as Benjamin Cisco. In 1987, Suchet played a bigfoot hunter in Harry and the Hendersons. He had roles in two Michael Douglas films, A Perfect Murder and The In-Laws. In 1997, he starred in the independent film Sunday.

Between 2014 and 2015, Suchet appeared in and narrated two BBC Television documentaries, undertaking an epic journey spanning the Mediterranean, inspired by the life and travels of the apostles St. Peter and St. Paul.

In 2016, Suchet took on the role of the narrator in the BBC live production of Peter Pan Goes Wrong, where he serves as the sole "professional" among the cast. At one point during the broadcast, when one of the actors is electrocuted, he is asked to distract the audience. His solution is to take Captain Hook's mustache and start acting like Poirot, even delivering his lines in a Belgian accent. This prompts the director (who is also playing Captain Hook) to retrieve the mustache and dismiss Suchet.

In 2017, Suchet starred as Dr Fagan in the BBC1 adaptation of Evelyn Waugh's Decline and Fall, and guest starred in the role of a character called "The Landlord", for an episode of the tenth series of Doctor Who entitled Knock Knock.

Canal Trust and River Thames Alliance

After starting work at Stratford-on-Avon in 1973, Suchet had a narrowboat named Prima Donna fitted out to his specification as a residence there. He later became vice-president of the Lichfield and Hatherton Canals Trust, whose most challenging achievement has been securing funding (both via an appeal and from influencing government decisions) concerning the building of the new M6 Toll motorway where it cuts the lines of the Lichfield Canal and the Hatherton Canal, both of which the Trust wishes to see reopened. He was also officially voted in as chairman of the River Thames Alliance in November 2005. At the July 2006 Annual General Meeting of the River Thames Alliance, he agreed to continue being chairman for another year. He is a patron of the River Thames Boat Project.

Awards, honours and appointments

Suchet's first major award was the Royal Television Society's award for best male actor for A Song for Europe in 1985. His performance as Agatha Christie's famous detective Hercule Poirot in the television series Poirot earned him a 1991 British Academy Television Award (BAFTA) nomination. In preparation for the role he says that he read every novel and short story and compiled an extensive file on Poirot. Suchet was given a Variety Club Award in 1994 for best actor for portraying John in David Mamet's play Oleanna at the Royal Court Theatre, London. He later won another Variety Club Award (as well as a 2000 Tony nomination for best performance by a leading actor in a play) for his portrayal of Antonio Salieri in a revival of Amadeus.

Suchet was nominated for another Royal Television Society award in 2002 for his performance as Augustus Melmotte in The Way We Live Now, which also earned him a BAFTA nomination. The same year, he was appointed Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE). On 10 October 2008, Suchet was awarded an honorary degree for his contributions to the Arts, from the University of Chichester. This was presented by the Vice-Chancellor at the Chichester Festival Theatre. In November 2008 Suchet won an International Emmy Award for Best Actor at the International Emmy Awards in New York for his role as tycoon Robert Maxwell in the 2007 BBC television film, Maxwell.

On 7 January 2009, he was awarded Freedom of the City of London, at the Guildhall in London. On 13 July 2010, David Suchet was awarded an honorary degree from the University of Kent at Canterbury Cathedral in Canterbury. He was appointed Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in the 2011 New Year Honours for "services to drama". On 18 March 2014, Suchet was given a Lifetime Achievement Award at the RTS Programme Awards 2013 for his outstanding performance in Agatha Christie's Poirot. Suchet is Honorary President of The Leica Society.

Suchet was knighted in the 2020 Birthday Honours for services to drama and charity.

Personal life

Family and genealogy

In 1972, Suchet first met his wife, Sheila Ferris, at the Belgrade Theatre, Coventry, where they were both working; he says that he fell in love with her as soon as he saw her, and that it took a while to persuade her to go out for a meal with him. They were married on 30 June 1976; the couple have a son, Robert (b. 1981), formerly a captain in the Royal Marines, and a daughter, Katherine (b. 1983), a physiotherapist.

Suchet is the brother of John Suchet, a former national news presenter for Five News, and former ITN newscaster, and presenter of the evening concert on Classic FM (2020). He is the uncle of broadcaster Richard Suchet, who is the son of Suchet's younger brother, Peter. Suchet's nephew is the RT broadcaster Rory Suchet.

Suchet's maternal grandfather, James Jarché, was a famous Fleet Street photographer notable for the first pictures of Edward VIII and Wallis Simpson and also for his pictures of Louis Blériot (1909) and the Siege of Sidney Street. Suchet first became interested in photography when his grandfather gave him a Leica M3 camera as a present. The Jarché family was originally named Jarchy, and were Russian Jews.

Suchet's paternal grandfather, Isidor Shokhet, was a Lithuanian Jew and lived in Kretinga, a Lithuanian city in the Pale of Settlement of the Russian Empire. Until 1791, Kretinga was part of the combined Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth. After the end of World War II it is now solely part of Lithuania. The surname shochet is Yiddish (derived from Hebrew) for "kosher butcher".

After escaping brutal persecution to relocate 16 mi (26 km) away to Memel in the German Empire, Isidor changed his surname to Suchedowitz - still Yiddish but with a Germanized and Slavic twist. Suche means "dry" in Polish. Suched+o+witz resembles the common Polish name construction using the [root]+wicz and putting the letter o in between as is grammatically mandated when the last letter of the root is d, h, n, t, among others. For instance, Janowicz=Jan+o+wicz becomes German-Yiddish by replacing the combination "cz" with "tz", e.g. Janowitz.

Isidor again changed his surname to Suchet after moving to Cape Town, South Africa.

Suchet's great-great-great-grandfather, George Jezzard, was a master mariner. He was captain of the brig Hannah, which sank nine miles off the coast of Suffolk during a violent storm on 28 May 1860, in which more than 100 vessels sank and at least 40 people died. Jezzard and six others of his crew were saved by local rescuers just before their ship sank.

Religious beliefs

Raised without religion, in 1986 Suchet underwent a religious conversion after reading Romans 8 in his hotel room; soon afterwards, he was baptised into the Church of England. Suchet stated in an interview with Strand Magazine, "I'm a Christian by faith. I like to think it sees me through a great deal of my life. I very much believe in the principles of Christianity and the principles of most religions, actually—that one has to abandon oneself to a higher good." In 2012, Suchet made a documentary for the BBC on his personal hero, Saint Paul, to discover what he was like as a man by charting his evangelistic journey around the Mediterranean. Two years later, he would film another documentary, this time on the apostle Saint Peter.

On 22 November 2012, the British Bible Society appointed David Suchet and Dr Paula Gooder as new vice-presidents. They joined the existing vice-presidents: John Sentamu (Archbishop of York), Vincent Nichols (Archbishop of Westminster), Barry Morgan (Archbishop of Wales), David F. Ford (Regius Professor of Divinity at Cambridge), Joel Edwards (International Director of Micah Challenge) and Lord Alton of Liverpool. Following the time when he bade farewell to his role as Hercule Poirot, Suchet fulfilled a 27-year ambition to make an audio recording of The Bible's New International Version, which was released on 24 April 2014.

Political views

In August 2014, Suchet was one of 200 public figures who were signatories to a letter to The Guardian expressing their hope that Scotland would vote to remain part of the United Kingdom in the September 2014 referendum on that issue.

Filmography

Film

Year Title Role Other notes
1971 The Taming of the Shrew: An Introduction Unknown
Henry IV, Part 2: An Introduction Unknown
1980 Schiele in Prison Gustav Klimt
1982 The Missionary Corbett
1983 Trenchcoat Inspector Stagnos
1984 Greystoke: The Legend of Tarzan, Lord of the Apes Buller
The Little Drummer Girl Mesterbein
1985 The Falcon and the Snowman Alex
1985 A Song for Europe Dyre
1986 Iron Eagle Minister of Defense Colonel Akir Nakesh
1987 Harry and the Hendersons Jacques LaFleur
1988 A World Apart Muller
To Kill a Priest Bishop
1989 When the Whales Came Will
1993 The Lucona Affair [de] Rudi Waltz
1996 Executive Decision Nagi Hassan / Altar
1997 Sunday Oliver / Matthew Delacorta
1998 A Perfect Murder Detective Mohamed Karaman
1999 Wing Commander Captain Jason Sansky
2000 Sabotage! Napoleon
2002 Pinocchio Geppetto / Judge dub voice portrayed by Carlo Giuffrè
2003 The In-Laws Jean-Pierre Thibodoux
2003 Foolproof Leo Gillette
2004 Space Odyssey: Voyage to the Planets The Narrator TV movie, Voice
2006 Flushed Away Rita's Dad Voice
2006 Arthur and the Invisibles The Narrator English version, Voice
2007 Flood Deputy Prime Minister Campbell
2007 Maxwell Robert Maxwell
2008 The Bank Job Lew Vogel
2009 Act of God Dr. Benjamin Cisco
2011 All My Sons Joe Keller
2014 Effie Gray Mr. Ruskin
2014 Long Day's Journey into Night James Tyrone
2015 The Importance of Being Earnest Lady Bracknell
2016 Near Myth: The Oskar Knight Story Himself
2017 American Assassin CIA Director Stansfield
2018 Dinner with Edward Edward

Television

Year Title Role Other notes
1973 The Protectors Leo Episode: "Fighting Fund"
1978 The Professionals Krivas Episode: "Where The Jungle Ends"
1980 A Tale of Two Cities John Barsad TV movie
Oppenheimer Edward Teller 6 episodes
1981 Play for Today Reger Episode: "The Cause"
1982 The Hunchback of Notre Dame Clopin Trouillefou TV movie
1983 The Last Day Howard TV movie
Red Monarch Beria TV movie
Being Normal Bill TV movie
Reilly, Ace of Spies Inspector Tsientsin Episode: "Prelude to War"
1984 Master of the Game André d'Usseau 3 episodes
Freud Dr. Sigmund Freud 6 episodes
Oxbridge Blues Colin 2 episodes
1985 Gulag Matvei TV movie
Blott on the Landscape Blott 6 episodes
A Crime of Honour Steve Dyer TV movie
Thirteen at Dinner Inspector Japp TV movie
Mussolini: The Untold Story Dino Grandi 2 episodes
1986 Murrow William L. Shirer TV movie
King and Castle Devas Episode: "Partners"
1987 The Last Innocent Man Jonathan Gault TV movie
1988 Tales of the Unexpected Yves Drouard Episode: "A Time to Die"
Once in a Life Time Herman Glogauer TV movie
1989 Cause Célèbre T.J. O'Connor K.C. TV movie
1989–2013 Agatha Christie's Poirot Hercule Poirot 13 series; 70 episodes
1990 The Play on One Joe Episode: "Separation"
Theatre Night William Shakespeare Episode: "Scenes of Money and Death"
1992 Science Fiction Roger Altounyan Episode: "Sherlock Holmes and the Case of the Missing Link"
The Secret Agent Alfred Verloc 3 episodes
1995 Moses Aaron TV movie
1996 Cruel Train Ruben Roberts TV movie
Screen Two Vlachos Episode: "Deadly Voyage"
1997 Solomon Joab TV movie
The Phoenix and the Carpet The Phoenix 6 episodes
1998 Seesaw Morris Price 3 episodes
1999 RKO 281 Louis B. Mayer TV movie
2001–2002 NCS: Manhunt DI John Borne Pilot & Series; 8 episodes
2001 Murder in Mind Edward Palmer Episode: "Teacher"
Victoria & Albert Baron Christian Friedrich von Stockmar, M.D. TV movie
The Way We Live Now Augustus Melmotte 4 episodes
2002 Get Carman: The Trials of George Carman QC George Carman QC TV movie
Live From Baghdad Naji Al-Hadithi TV movie
2003 Henry VIII Cardinal Thomas Wolsey TV movie
2004 A Bear Named Winnie General Hallholland TV movie
2006 Dracula Abraham Van Helsing TV movie
2007 Maxwell Robert Maxwell TV movie
Flood Deputy Prime Minister Campbell 2 episodes
2009 Diverted Samuel Stern TV movie
2010 Going Postal Reacher Gilt 2 episodes
2011 Hidden Sir Nigel Fountain 3 episodes
Great Expectations Jaggers 3 episodes
2012 The Hollow Crown Duke of York Episode: Richard II
2014 In the Steps of St. Paul Narrator 2 Episode BBC TV Documentary
2015 In the Steps of St. Peter Narrator 2 Episode BBC TV Documentary
2016 Peter Pan Goes Wrong Narrator TV movie
2017 Decline and Fall Dr. Fagan 3 episodes
Doctor Who The Landlord Episode: "Knock Knock"
Capitaine Marleau Herbert White Episode: "Sang & Lumière"
2018 Urban Myths Salvador Dalí Episode: "The Dalí & The Cooper"
Press George Emmerson 3 episodes
2019 His Dark Materials Kaisa (voice) 5 episodes

Stage

Year Title Role(s) Notes
1973 Romeo and Juliet Tybalt
Richard II Messenger
As You Like It Orlando
The Taming of the Shrew Player
Toad of Toad Hall Mole
1974 King John Hubert
Cymbeline Pisanio
King Lear Fool
Summerfolk Nikolai Zamislov
Comrades Willmer
1975 Love's Labour's Lost Ferdinand
1976 Sherlock Holmes Professor Moriarty
1978 The Tempest Caliban
The Taming of the Shrew Grumio
Love's Labour's Lost Sir Nathaniel
Antony and Cleopatra Pompey
The Winter's Tale Robert Cecil
1979 He That Plays the King Gloucester, Henry V, Macbeth, Osric
Once in a Lifetime Herman Glogauer
Measure for Measure Angelo
1980 Richard II Henry Bolingbroke
Richard III Edward IV
1981 The Merchant of Venice Shylock
Troilus and Cressida Achilles
The Swan Down Gloves Mazda
1982 Every Good Boy Deserves Favour Ivanov
1985 Othello Iago
1987 Separation Joe Green
1993 Oleanna John
1994 What A Performance Sid Field
1996 Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? George
1999 Amadeus Antonio Salieri
2005 Once in a Lifetime Herman Glogauer
2007 The Last Confession Cardinal Giovanni Benelli
2009 Complicit Roger Cowan
2010 All My Sons Joe Keller
2012 Long Day's Journey into Night James Tyrone
2014 The Last Confession Cardinal Giovanni Benelli
2015 The Importance of Being Earnest Lady Bracknell
2018 The Price Gregory Solomon
2019 The Collection Harry
The Price Gregory Solomon
2022 Mimma Alfredo Frassati
2023 Peter Pan Captain Hook

Video games

  • Agatha Christie: Murder on the Orient Express (2006)

Interviews and TV documentaries

Poirot and Agatha Christie

  • Being Poirot BBC documentary (2014)
  • David Suchet on playing Hercule Poirot – Dead Man’s Folly Q&A – BFI
  • David Suchet Final Poirot scene hardest of my career BBC 2013
  • David Suchet on Poirot's Death Loose Women ITV 2015
  • Au revoir Hercule Poirot – BBC News
  • Poirot's David Suchet ITV
  • The David Suchet Interview by Studio 10 (Australia) The ultra-smooth talking David Suchet aka Agatha Christie's Hercule Poirot drops by Studio 10.
  • Premier.tv : David Suchet talks about Poirot
  • Holly and Phil chat with David Suchet BBC – 13 November 2013
  • Today Tonight – David Suchet Channel Seven, Perth (Australia) 2014
  • David Suchet interviewed by Clive Anderson BBC, Wogan 1990s
  • The Mystery of Agatha Christie ITV Perspectives, 2013.
  • Agatha Christie BBC documentary
  • The Agatha Christie code ITV 2005

BBC documentaries

  • David Suchet on the Orient Express (TV documentary) (2010)
  • David Suchet: In the Footsteps of St Paul (BBC documentary) (2012)
  • David Suchet: In the Footsteps of St Peter (BBC Documentary) (2015)

Other interviews

  • The One Show: David Suchet – Interview (30 April 2015) BBC
  • Long Day's Journey into Night David Suchet on acting, Digital Theatre Plus 2013
  • Roles, Characters, Empathy: David Suchet (On) Acting 2012
  • Suchet receives CBE BCC 2011
  • David Suchet, Actor – A Birthday Tribute 2011
  • International Emmy Winner – David Suchet BBC 2009
  • David Suchet – Who Do You Think You Are BBC 2009
  • Cannes Interview with David Suchet May 1997

See also

Kids robot.svg In Spanish: David Suchet para niños

kids search engine
David Suchet Facts for Kids. Kiddle Encyclopedia.