Original caricature by Jeff York of Mia McKenna-Bruce and Martin Freeman in the Netflix miniseries AGATHA CHRISTIE’S SEVEN DIALS. (copyright 2026)
When adapting Agatha Christie for the big or small screen, it’s important that the production applies a liberal amount of “cheek.” Cheek being a certain amount of impertinence, to not take things too seriously. The problem with Kenneth Branagh’s first two filmed adaptations of Christie’s most famous Hercule Poirot mysteries – MURDER ON THE ORIENT EXPRESS in 2017 and DEATH ON THE NILE in 2022 – was that they lacked fun because the actor/director took the material way too seriously. Thankfully, he got the cheek right for his third adaptation A HAUNTING IN VENICE in 2023. And it would be wise for him to study the new Netflix miniseries AGATHA CHRISTIE’S SEVEN DIALS if he plans on any more adaptations because this three-part miniseries gets everything Christie exceedingly correct. The show is involving, smart, tense, and played with the perfect amount of cheek.
Creator/writer Chris Chibnall and his director Chris Sweeney aren’t even working with one of the best Christie novels, but they make the absolute most of it. The Seven Dials Mystery, the book upon which the miniseries is based, was only Christie’s fourteenth book when it was published in 1929 and it’s a decent mystery but not in the league of the aforementioned Christie stories, let alone And Then There Were None or The Murder of Roger Ackroyd. If anything, its most unique feature is that it may very well have been the template for which the Nancy Drew series of books followed what with its amateur detective being an intrepid ingenué. The character of Lady Eileen “Bundle” Brent becomes the book’s sleuth when a murder victim is found poisoned in her very home.
By keeping “Bundle” the central character, the show not only keeps the best part of the novel front and center but allows the mini-series to become a potentially returning show with the character becoming the franchise. All the better too since the casting of Mia McKenna Bruce in the lead is spot on. Her “Bundle” is indeed a bundle of joy – smart, tenacious, attractive and witty – the first person you’d want to talk to at a party, let alone turn to for help investigating a homegrown crime. She’s a natural when it comes to sleuthing as she’s seen a lot in her day, including the death of her father and brother at a young age, let alone witnessing her forlorn mother vanquish the family fortune under such unfortunate events. Such losses have seasoned her and made her see through a lot of the silliness of the rich and the class system.
She knows the snobby rich types oh so well and figures someone from that circle is the culprit and so she sets out to crack the case, much the chagrin of her hoity-toity mother, Lady Caterham (Helena Bonham-Carter, dryly underplaying) and other one-percenters. The murder which occurs is that of Gerry Wade (Corey Mylchreest), a handsome lad who seemed to be no one’s enemy. This one is personal for Bundle, and she wants justice for the loss of her close friend.
Bundle takes to sleuthing like a fish to water, much to the chagrin of an intrepid Scotland Yard superintendent named Battle who shows up to officially investigate the murder. All sorts of chicanery were taking place that night in the Chaterham home when the debt-ridden Lady Chaterham rented it out for a party involving political big wigs. Christie clearly likes character names that are a bit on-the-nose here as Battle does indeed battle with Bundle for clues. Martin Freeman plays Battle adroitly, coming off as dry as corn flakes without milk. The veteran character actor earns laughs every time he’s onscreen as he huffs and puffs competing with Bundle.
The rest of the cast is an inspired bunch as well, with Hughie O’Donnell, Edward Bluemel, and Alex Macqueen standing out particularly. And even though the mysteries at hand become more and more apparent with each dramatic twist, the show rollicks with superb production values, costuming, cinematography and scoring. It’s a beautifully rendered period piece, albeit one with an energy and pacing that seems more akin to contemporary shows. The youthful actors also play into more of a modern ethos, and Bundle’s encounters with sexist men manages to feel old-fashioned and yet shockingly relevant still today. Politics plays into the murders at hand, as well as the subtext here since Bundle is constantly being told to stay in her lane in one way or another.
Here’s hoping that Netflix has a big hit on its hand to encourage more production ASAP. I think Dame Agatha would be proud of this adaptation, and my guess she might even be more than a little horrified that not all that much has changed regarding the patriarchy in a hundred years. Lady Eileen is also a bundle of nerves, as in she has a lot of nerve being such an interloper amongst England’s elite. More power to her, I say, and to all the experts who brought the cheek to this jolly good show.
