Agatha Christie’s Poirot and Miss Marple join Mr Men and Little Miss universe

Dame Agatha Christie’s detectives Hercule Poirot and Miss Marple have joined the Mr Men and Little Miss universe in a new series collaboration.

The fictional characters have appeared as illustrations in the beloved children’s book series to retell and reimagine some of the best-selling novelist’s most famous stories.

Two of the books, Little Miss Marple: Muddle At The Vicarage and Mr Poirot: Mischief On The Nile, adapted from Dame Agatha’s The Murder At The Vicarage and Death On The Nile, were published on Thursday with a further two due to hit shelves in February 2026.

The first book follows Little Miss Marple as she helps Inspector Nonsense and Constable Silly uncover the truth after Reverend Muddle suspects a theft at the vicarage while the latter is about Mr Poirot as he is tasked with solving a mystery among his many Mr Men and Little Miss suspects during a holiday cruise along the River Nile.

Originally created by cartoonist Roger Hargreaves in 1971, the Mr Men and Little Miss series has been continued on by his son, Adam, who took over the family business aged 25 following his death.

Adam said: “I have had the privilege from 1988 to continue to draw and write for the series. It has been a real pleasure and an intriguing challenge to bring together the timeless mysteries of Agatha Christie with the playful world of the Mr Men and Little Miss.

“Agatha Christie’s iconic stories now have a new twist that neither she nor my father might have imagined.”

The partnership forms part of Agatha Christie Limited’s anniversary programme in 2026, marking 50 years since the author’s death and a century since The Murder Of Roger Ackroyd was published.

James Prichard, chief executive and chairman of Agatha Christie Limited (and Dame Agatha’s great grandson), said: “As a lifelong fan of the Mr Men and Little Miss books, it has always been a wish of mine to put our beloved detectives, Hercule Poirot and Miss Marple, into their universe.

“These clever and very funny reimaginings of my great grandmother’s stories, which include some of my favourite characters (in rather suspicious circumstances!), are bound to delight fans of both authors. This is absolutely a dream collaboration.”

David Brawn, HarperFiction’s publisher of estates, added: “I’ve been working on Agatha Christie at HarperCollins for 30 years, always looking for ways to innovate and to expand the author’s already unrivalled popularity.

“In all that time, nothing has come close to the joy of seeing these cherished characters so painstakingly transformed by Adam Hargreaves into stories that will capture the hearts and minds of children everywhere. And Agatha Christie’s adult fans will adore them, too. He’s an absolute genius.”

The launch will also include a free city-wide book hunt, with hundreds of copies of the new stories hidden across the streets of London and Manchester for families and book lovers to find.

The Great Little Mystery Book Hunt takes place from October 27.