The iconic 1978 “whodunnit” airs on BBC Two on Saturday
While on a Nile steamer, detective Hercule Poirot investigates the death of an heiress who had stolen her best friend’s fiancé and crossed other passengers(Image: BBC)
A classic Agatha Christie film airs on BBC Two this weekend. As the bank holiday is finally upon us, it’s the perfect opportunity to make the most of the extra free time and nestle down on the sofa. The 1978 film Death on the Nile graces our screens this Saturday.
Unfortunately the weather isn’t looking too promising for Easter weekend, but the BBC is providing enough to keep us occupied. Death on the Nile is a film adaptation of the 1937 mystery story centred around the famous Belgian detective Hercule Poirot.
It is praised for its fantastic cinematography in Egypt, and it is the first of six appearances of Peter Ustinov as Poirot.
It also features a cast of Hollywood legends including Bette Davis, Maggie Smith, George Kennedy, Mia Farrow, Jane Birkin, Olivia Hussey, Angela Lansbury and David Niven.
The film tells the tale of detective Hercule Poirot as he investigates a murder on board a paddle steamer in Egypt.
The BBC’s description said: “The victim was an unpopular heiress, whose outspoken manner put her at odds with most of her fellow passengers during their cruise on the Nile.”
Death on the Nile airs Saturday, April 4 at 4.50pm on BBC Two. It is scheduled to end at 7.05pm.
The film won an Academy Award in 1979 as well as a BAFTA, both for best costume design.
It as later adapted into another film 2022, featuring Kenneth Branagh as Poirot and Gal Gadot as Linnet Ridgeway.
Death on the Nile is just one of the several film adaptations of Agatha Christie’s work.
Others which are also focussed on the work of Hercule Poirot include Murder on the Orient Express (1974 and 2017), Evil Under the Sun (1982) and Appointment with Death (1988).
Miss Marple was also a prominent character from Agatha Christie, which led to the classic movies Murder, She Said (1961) and The Mirror Crack’d (1980).
Most recently, a new adaptation called “Agatha Christie’s Seven Dials” premiered on Netflix in January 2026, which is based on the 1929 novel The Seven Dials Mystery.
Death on the Nile airs Saturday, April 4 at 4.50pm on BBC Two.