The Dream (19 Mar. 1989)
"Agatha Christie's Poirot" The Dream (original title)

A famous pie manufacturer tells Poirot that he has dreamt of his own suicide, then dies under the same circumstances he dreamt about the very next day.

Director:

Edward Bennett

Writer:

Clive Exton (dramatisation)

Stars:

David Suchet, Hugh Fraser, Philip Jackson

Cast

Episode cast overview, first billed only:
David Suchet	...	Hercule Poirot
Hugh Fraser	...	Captain Hastings
Philip Jackson	...	Chief Inspector Japp
Pauline Moran	...	Miss Lemon
Alan Howard	...	Benedict Farley / Hugo Cornworthy
Joely Richardson	...	Joanna Farley
Mary Tamm	...	Mrs. Farley
Martin Wenner	...	Herbert Chudley
Christopher Saul	...	Mr. Tremlett
Paul Lacoux	...	Dr. Stillingfleet
Neville Phillips	...	Holmes
Tommy Wright	...	Workman
Fred Bryant	...	Workman
Donald Bisset	...	Mayor (as Donald Bissett)
Arthur Howell	...	Fencing Instructor

Storyline

Hercule Poirot is puzzled when Benedict Farley summons him to a late night meeting. Farley is known as the king of pies as his company manufactures a well-known brand of meat pies. At their meeting, he tells Poirot of a recurring dream where he takes a gun from his desk drawer, walks to his office window and commits suicide. His only question for Poirot is whether someone could be manipulating him psychologically. When Farley is found dead the next day - in circumstances that appear to match those in his dream - Poirot and Captain Hastings find themselves assisting Inspector Japp in a case that involves false identities and an affair. It is Miss Lemon, however, who provides Poirot with the vital information that allows him to solve the case

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Plot Keywords:

murder mystery

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Genres:

Drama | Mystery | Crime | Thriller

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Details

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

19 March 1989 (UK)

Filming Locations:

Twickenham Studios, London, England, UK

Company Credits

Technical Specs

Runtime:

50 min 50 min (36 episodes)

Color:

Black and White (archive footage) Color

Did You Know?

Quotes

[first lines]
Newsreel Voice: British pies are famous the world over, and last year Farley's Foods produced five million of 'em. Everything from steak and kidney to Cornish pasty. But that's not enough for old man Farley; he wants to double the score. Work's been pushing ahead on the new extension to his factory, and this week the great day dawns.

User Reviews

Great setting but hard to swallow plot

This episode has a fascinating setting at a meat pie plant (I could have done without the quick slaughterhouse scene even though it is only suggestive) which required the use of a lot of extras. The owner of the plant is very 19th century in his views (and his appearance - he sports bushy sideburns) and expects his employees to thank him for allowing them to work at his plant. Of course, he treats his daughter and everyone around him with the same mean spiritedness and arrogance. The owner lives at the plant and summons, via letter, Poirot to meet with him that evening (wow-postal service must have been amazing back then) and to bring the letter with him. At the meeting, he tells Poirot about a recurring dream he has of shooting himself. Sure enough the next day at the appointed time, the owner is found shot dead. SPOILER: That someone was impersonating the owner during the Poirot meeting was way too obvious. The dead giveaway was the unexplained fact of having a light shine in Poirot's face when he was meeting with the pseudo-owner. They might as well have had a title card saying: we don't want Poirot to get a good look at this man. To be fair though, this kind of impersonation is hard to pull off in a television show whereas it wouldn't have been as difficult in a written story because on television they had to show the real owner as well as the fake owner whereas in the written story Poirot would not have seen the real owner except when he was dead and probably didn't look too good. So, high marks for the opening scene and as ever high marks for the actors but the plot was just average.