Hallowe'en Party by Agatha Christie

At a Hallowe’en party, Joyce – a hostile thirteen-year-old – boasts that she once witnessed a murder. When no-one believes her, she storms off home. But within hours her body is found, still in the house, drowned in an apple-bobbing tub. That night, Hercule Poirot is called in to find the ‘evil presence’. But first he must establish whether he is looking for a murderer or a double-murderer.

For me, it is truth I want. Always truth.
Hercule Poirot, Hallowe'en Party

More about this story

It’s at Hallowe’en that Joyce Reynolds is found drowned in an apple-bobbing tub, but was it true that she once witnessed a murder? Unmasking a murderer isn't going to be easy for Hercule Poirot - there isn't a soul in Woodleigh who believes this little storyteller was even murdered.

Poirot and his friend, crime novelist Ariadne Oliver, must investigate reckless teenagers and occult themes. Again, the sharp wits of Poirot and the enthusiastic deduction of Mrs Oliver join forces. Poirot sums up his friend’s character: "It is a pity that she is so scatty. And yet she had originality of mind" – a sentiment many have tried to apply to Agatha Christie herself.

Agatha Christie dedicated the story "To P.G. Wodehouse - whose books and stories have brightened up my life for many years. Also, to show my pleasure in his having been kind enough to tell me he enjoyed my books." Wodehouse was himself a big Agatha Christie fan.

The story was adapted for radio by BBC Radio 4, starring John Moffatt in 2006. A graphic novel was released in 2008, while Hallowe’en Party’s only appearance on TV was in 2009, with David Suchet as Poirot and Zoë Wanamaker resuming her role as Mrs Oliver.