MICHAEL MALONEY TO STAR AS HERCULE POIROT
IN THE UK & IRELAND TOUR OF
AGATHA CHRISTIE’S
MURDER ON THE ORIENT EXPRESS ADAPTED BY KEN LUDWIG
FROM 6 SEPTEMBER 2024 TO 3 MAY 2025
Michael Maloney will star as Agatha Christie’s famous Belgian detective, Hercule Poirot, in Lucy Bailey’s new production of the UK & Ireland Tour of MURDER ON THE ORIENT EXPRESS. Agatha Christie Ltd and Fiery Angel will bring Ken Ludwig’s adaptation of the Agatha Christie classic to the stage, opening on 6 September at the Lowry in Salford and running through to 3 May 2025 at the Cheltenham Everyman.
Michael said of playing Poirot, “I am very excited and honoured to be joining a long line of extraordinary actors who have taken on the role of Hercule Poirot and hope I can be so, too. To work with such a talented director as Lucy Bailey and with top producers Fiery Angel is a gift and a privilege. Here’s to Orient Express hurtling through your town or city soon!”
Michael Maloney’s extensive film and television work includes Belfast, Iron Lady, Young Victoria, Notes on a Scandal, Branagh’s Hamlet, Zefferelli’s Hamlet, Truly Madly Deeply, The Crown, Magpie Murder, The Trial of Christine Keeler, The Five, River, The White Queen, Bonekickers, Empire, The Jury and Love on a Branch Line. On the stage, his many roles for the RSC include Edgar, Romeo and Prince Hal. For the National, he has appeared in Light Shining in Buckinghamshire as Cromwell, Alice’s Adventures Under Ground as Lewis Carroll and Once in a While the Odd Thing Happens as Benjamin Britten. In the West End, he has appeared in Peer Gynt (in the title role), Can You Hear Me at the Back? and Taking Steps.
Winter 1934 and an avalanche stops the Orient Express dead in its tracks. An American tycoon lies dead in his compartment, stabbed eight times, his door locked from the inside. Trapped in the snow with a killer still on board, can the world’s most famous detective, Hercule Poirot, crack the case before the train reaches its final destination?
MURDER ON THE ORIENT EXPRESS is one of Agatha Christie’s greatest literary achievements, with a final twist that is amongst her very best. Gripping, tense and masterfully cryptic, this brand-new production is a deliciously thrilling ride and an ingenious murder mystery, guaranteed to keep you guessing until the end of the line.
Further casting is to be announced.
MURDER ON THE ORIENT EXPRESS will be directed by Lucy Bailey (Witness for the Prosecution, And Then There Were None, The Other Boleyn Girl) and designed by Mike Britton, with lighting design by Oliver Fenwick, video design by Ian Galloway, sound design by Mic Pool, movement direction by Leah Hausman, casting by Abby Galvin and with Victoria Gartner as assistant director.
Website: www.murderontheorientexpressplay.com
Instagram: @orientexpressplay
Facebook: @orientexpressplay
X: @orientexpressuk
TOUR SCHEDULE
2024
6-14 September The Lowry, Salford 0161 876 2000
17-21 September Norwich Theatre Royal 01603 630000
24-28 September Theatre Royal Plymouth 01752 267222
1-5 October CanterburyMarlowe Theatre 01227 787787
8-12 October Glasgow King’s Theatre
https://www.atgtickets.com/venues/kings-theatre-glasgow
15-19 October Curve, Leicester
22-26 October Edinburgh Festival Theatre 0131 529 6000
29 October – 2 November Cambridge Arts Theatre 01223 503333
5-9 November Richmond Theatre, London
12-16 November Malvern Festival Theatre 01684 892277
19-23 November TruroHall for Cornwall 01872 262 466
2025
14-18 January Newcastle Theatre Royal 0191 232 7010
21-25 January The Yvonne Arnaud Theatre, Guildford 01483 44 00 00
28 January – 1 February Birmingham The Alexandra
4-8 February Sheffield Lyceum 0114 249 6000
11-15 February Aberdeen His Majesty’s Theatre
18-22 February SouthamptonMayflower Theatre 02380 711 811
25 February – 1 March Milton KeynesTheatre
www.atgtickets.com/venues/milton-keynes-theatre
4-8 March New Theatre, Cardiff 0343 310 0041
www.trafalgartickets.com/new-theatre-cardiff
11-16 March Theatre Royal Bath 01225 448844
theatreroyal.org.uk on sale 24 May
25-29 March York Grand Opera House
1- 5 April NottinghamTheatre Royal 0115 989 5555
8-12 April Gaiety Theatre, Dublin 00 353 1 646 8600
22-26 April Theatre Royal Brighton
29 April – 3 May Cheltenham Everyman Theatre 01242 572573
ABOUT AGATHA CHRISTIE LIMITED
Agatha Christie Limited (ACL) has been managing the literary and media rights to Agatha Christie’s works around the world since 1955. Collaborating with the very best talents in film, television, publishing, stage and on digital platforms, ACL ensures that Christie’s work continues to reach new audiences in innovative ways and to the highest standard.
The company is managed by Christie’s great grandson James Prichard.
Current ACL theatre productions include WITNESS FOR THE PROSECUTION at London County Hall and a hugely successful UK tour of AND THEN THERE WERE NONE in collaboration with Fiery Angel. Ken Ludwig’s stage adaptation of MURDER ON THE ORIENT EXPRESS has enjoyed wide international success, particularly in the US and throughout Europe.
ABOUT FIERY ANGEL
Headed by Edward Snape and Marilyn Eardley, Fiery Angel is an award-winning international production company based in London’s West End.
Recent productions include: Kathy and Stella Solve A Murder! (West End and UK Tour), King Lear (West End), And Then There Were None (UK and Ireland Tour), Hairspray (West End), Fleabag (West End), Home, I’m Darling (West End and UK Tour), Mary Stuart (West End and UK Tour), Kenneth Branagh Theatre Company: The Winter’s Tale, Red Velvet, Romeo and Juliet, The Entertainer (West End) and The 39 Steps (9 years in the West End, 3 UK Tours, 3 years on Broadway). Fiery Angel has acted as a co-producer alongside The National Theatre on its West End productions of Nine Night, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time and The Lehman Trilogy.
As part of Fiery Angel Entertainment: Dolly Parton’s Smoky Mountain Christmas Carol (Queen Elizabeth Hall), Rob Brydon (UK Tour) and Circus 1903 (Royal Festival Hall, Eventim Apollo).
As part of The Children’s Theatre Partnership: The Boy at the Back of the Class (UK Tour), Unexpected Twist (UK Tour), Animal Farm (UK Tour), Goodnight Mister Tom (West End and 3 UK Tours, Olivier Award winner) and Swallows and Amazons (West End and UK Tour).
As part of Fierylight Productions: Smartest Giant in Town (UK Tour and West End) and Peppa Pig Live! (West End, UK Tour, US Tour and Australian Tour).