The Adventure of Johnnie Waverly
Agatha Christie's Poirot
Series 1
"The Adventure of Johnnie Waverly"
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| David Suchet as Hercule Poirot |
One would think, if parents went to the police with letters threatening a kidnapping unless money was paid that the police would take the threat seriously. But the police in “The Adventure of Johnnie Waverly” don’t, and that is where Hercule Poirot must step in.
The letters to the Waverlys pique Poirot’s interest
The family receiving the threatening letters are the Waverlys. Marcus and Ada Waverly have a young son named Johnnie. It is he who the kidnappers are threatening to take. Yet, despite the letters in front of them, the police do not take the threat seriously. Neither does Poirot’s friend, Captain Hastings, when he learns about what is going on. In fact, Hastings believes the letters are a joke.
Poirot, however, looks at the letters from a different angle. Why is someone warning of a kidnapping at all? Why are the kidnappers telling their plans to the people they wish to harm? It is most unusual.
There is unusual behavior with the Waverlys
Mrs. Waverly is understandably distraught over the thought of her son being kidnapped. What Poirot finds odd, though, is that she is spending time ill in bed. Why he finds this odd, I am not sure. Someone can be upset enough that they become very ill. It is possible that Poirot expected Mrs. Waverly to be more forward moving despite her illness. That she would be out doing whatever she could to hunt down the potential kidnappers or fighting and doing whatever she could to protect her son. Maybe the fact that she wasn’t doing any of those things and that she was in bed is what he found odd.
Then there is Mr. Waverly. A very pompous man, he believes he is far superior to just about everyone. He insults Chief Inspector Japp for his lack of action when the letters were first brought to him. Now, if his being dismissed by the police force when he went to them for help was the only reason for the insult, I would understand it better. I probably would not think very highly of anyone who did that to me either. However, with Waverly, I suspect the dislike of Japp and insult are more strongly stemmed from his belief that he is far superior to anyone on the police force, and that he expected them to do his bidding without question, no matter what that bidding may be.
Poirot defends Japp and finds a way to put up with Waverly, even though Waverly keeps getting his name wrong. That is how above everyone Waverly believes he is. He can’t even bother himself to get the name right of the person who has come to help him.
Poirot runs into obstacles trying to help
At least help is what Poirot intended to do. On the morning of the planned kidnapping, Poirot and Hastings go into town for breakfast and to do some further investigating. While trying to get back to the Waverly home, Hastings’s car breaks down and they miss the set time for the kidnapping.
This may not have been such a big deal if there had been more people to watch out for Johnnie in the house. But the house is nearly empty at the kidnapping time, except for the police, who have suddenly decided to take the threats seriously.
The house is empty because Waverly made the odd decision to fire all but two of his staff. Poirot objected to this very illogical step, and the only response Waverly had was to get all blustery and belligerent.
Another odd thing Waverly does is he takes Johnnie out of his mother’s arms upstairs and brings the boy downstairs, to where there is easier access to him. This makes it easier for Johnnie to be taken even with the police presence, something Poirot may have pointed out had the car not broken down. It is all very odd behavior for a man who is supposed to be concerned for his son.
Miss Lemon keeps life together
Back at home, Poirot’s secretary, Miss Lemon, is creating a new filing system. While Poirot may only truly appreciate this a little bit and not think of the filing system as that important, it actually is. All the work Miss Lemon does keeps Poirot’s life together, and he would be lost without her. Between Miss Lemon’s organization and who she is as a person, she is the one really running Poirot’s life.
As much as Miss Lemon takes pride in her work, I do suspect she would like to go on an adventure from time to time, as Poirot and Hastings do. I highly doubt she wants to stay in Poirot’s office all the time. Who would when you work for someone with an exciting career like Poirot’s?
Main Cast
Hercule Poirot – David Suchet Captain Hastings – Hugh Fraser
Chief Inspector Japp – Philip Jackson Miss Lemon – Pauline Moran
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