Harlequin was found dead on the dining room floor, stabbed in the heart with a table knife, his body strangely rigid. Columbine was found dead in her bed from an overdose of cocaine.

On the tenth episode of the third season of ‘Hercule Poirot’, the detective was asked to assist Scotland Yard in the strange events which took place at a costumed Victory Ball. A group of six people dressed in the costumes of ‘Commedia dell’ arte’ seems to be the at the centre of the events of this episode. Poirot was himself invited to the costume party together with captain Hastings, although the detective decided once again to show his singular personality by dressing up as himself since “the aim of the costume party is to dress up as someone famous” as the captain said. Things do not seem to start in the right direction at the ball, given that already two of the group are beginning to quarrel among themselves. In fact, Coco (Columbine) and Lord Cronshaw (Punchinello), who is thought to be engaged to her, are clearly in non-speaking terms. Coco is accompanied home by Chris Davidson (Pierrot). After a while at the party, the young Cronshaw (Harlequin) was found dead and subsequently Coco was also found dead at her house.

Poirot starts to investigate…

He finds out about crucial incriminating details like the fact that Coco was addicted to drugs and Cronshaw was very opposed to that or that Beltane’s costume had an unusual hump and a ruffle. He therefore arranges a get-together of the people involved at his flat where he reveals that there were actually only five costumes at the party that night and they make the arrest of Davidson stopped by the inspector Japp.

The grade of the details that Poirot managed to find only with the power of his mind (almost) is definitely high. The way he noticed the stiffness of the body which meant he had been dead for some time therefore the figure seen as Harlequin later could not have been him (Harlequin) but was one of the others. It could not have been Beltane as his costume was too elaborate to change quickly. He then noticed that there was a curtained recess in the dining room where Harlequin was found dead. Davidson who killed Cronshaw, hid the body in that recess, then took Courtenay home where he fed her an overdose of the drug. He did not stay there as he claimed but returned immediately.

His motive?? Self-preservation as always! He had been supplying Courtenay with drugs and Cronshaw was on the point of finding out and exposing him.

-Carmen xx