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The Big Four full cast audiobook

by Agatha Christie · Hercule Poirot, Book 5

Released 9 October 2026 · Updated 9 October 2026 · 5h 49m · 49 voices

The story (no spoilers)

Captain Hastings returns to London from Argentina to surprise his old friend Hercule Poirot, only to find the detective an hour from sailing for Rio on the most lucrative commission of his career. Then a gaunt stranger, caked in dust and mud, stumbles out of Poirot's bedroom, repeats the detective's name and address like a man in a trance, and collapses. Handed paper and pencil, he scrawls a single figure over and over, each one larger than the last. Poirot has already been chasing a whisper of his own: a phrase, "the Big Four," that seems to point to a vast international conspiracy. Now a nameless visitor, a cryptic number and a booked passage stand between him and the truth. With Inspector Japp watching and Hastings at his side, Poirot must decide whether his word to a client outweighs a puzzle that may reach across continents, and what an organisation with four masterminds wants from the world.

The cast

32 speaking roles are listed; walk-on parts are not. Each voice was designed, or chosen from our library of designed voices, to fit how the book describes the character, and it stays with them from the first chapter to the last. Portraits are illustrated impressions of each character.

Poirot
Male, about sixty years old, a Belgian living in London in the 1920s, a middle-class private detective. He has a Belgian French accent with precise, slightly inverted English. His voice is a gentle, light baritone, small-framed and crisp. He speaks briskly and carefully, with neat emphasis. Methodical, vain, kindly and twinkling.
Captain Hastings
Male, about thirty-three years old, an English army officer turned rancher, living in London in the 1920s, upper-middle-class. He speaks in a natural upper-middle-class English accent, a warm, open tenor-baritone with a healthy, sporting voice. He talks quickly and eagerly, in a plain colloquial way. Affectionate, impulsive, loyal and cheerful.
Inspector Japp
Male, about fifty-two years old, an English Scotland Yard inspector in London in the 1920s, lower-middle-class. He has a brisk London accent, a slightly gravelly mid-pitched baritone. He speaks in short, jaunty, quick phrases, colloquial and plain. Good-humoured, dapper and shrewd, sometimes teasing.
Mr. Ingles
Male, about fifty-eight years old, a retired English civil servant living in London in the 1920s, upper-middle-class. He speaks with a refined educated English accent, in a quiet, soft, low-mid voice, slightly dry. He speaks slowly, in measured, polite sentences. Courteous, earnest and anxious, aware he may seem cranky.
Madame Olivier
Female, about fifty years old, a French scientist working in Paris in the 1920s, educated upper-middle-class. She speaks English with a French accent, formal and correct. Her voice is a cool, level, mid-low alto, very controlled. She speaks slowly, with long pauses. Reserved, intense and guarded, slow to smile.
Chinaman
Male, about forty years old, a Chinese messenger working in London in the 1920s, working-class. He speaks English with a Chinese accent, simple and broken at times, in a deep, even, resonant baritone. He speaks slowly, flat and steady. Impassive, courteous and unreadable.
Countess Vera Rossakoff
Female, about forty-five years old, a Russian aristocrat living in exile in Europe in the 1920s, upper-class. She speaks fluent English with a Russian accent, rolled r sounds and formal phrasing. Her voice is a rich, dark, husky contralto. She speaks at a leisurely, confident pace. Clever, ironic, mocking and cool.
Number Four
Male, about forty-five years old, an educated cosmopolitan travelling Europe in the 1920s, upper-class. He speaks polished, clear educated English with a faint neutral foreign flavour. His voice is a smooth, rich bass-baritone. He speaks in a calm, unhurried, mocking way, low and curt when he is hard. Audacious, composed and ironic.
Flossie Monro
Female, about thirty-eight years old, a London shop woman in the 1920s, working-class, with rouge and dyed hair. She speaks with a broad Cockney accent. Her voice is a bright, slightly nasal mezzo, a little worn. She chatters quickly, with playful, coy exclamations. Cheerful, gossipy, flirtatious and hopeful.
Inspector Meadows
Male, about forty-eight years old, an English county police inspector in the 1920s, lower-middle-class. He speaks with a mild Home Counties rural accent. His voice is a hearty, slightly husky, stout baritone. He speaks in a bustling, chatty rush, stiff at first, then talkative. Self-important, pleased with himself and deferential.
Captain Kent
Male, about forty-five years old, an American secret service officer in London in the 1920s, middle-class. He speaks with a General American accent with a slow Western drawl. His voice is a dry, flat, mid-pitched baritone, lean and wooden. He speaks slowly and deliberately. Impassive, dry and grimly curious.
Chang Yen
Male, about sixty years old, a Chinese gentleman of high standing living in 1920s London, wealthy, highly educated and acting as an envoy for his master. He speaks precise, formal English with a soft Chinese-inflected accent. His voice is a smooth, dry, medium-low baritone, slightly thin with age. He speaks slowly and deliberately, with pointed pauses, courteous, controlled and quietly commanding.
Abe Ryland
Male, about sixty-two years old, an American multi-millionaire businessman in 1920s England, self-made and wealthy. He speaks with a rough New York accent and American slang. His voice is a gruff, rasping, low baritone, heavy and weathered. He speaks in a slow drawl, blunt and abrupt. Irritable, impatient and domineering.
Dr. Ridgeway
Male, about fifty-five years old, an English general practitioner in London in the 1920s, middle-class. He speaks in a brisk educated English accent. His voice is a hearty, mid-high baritone, a little clipped. He speaks in quick, bustling bursts, soothing at the bedside. Blunt, busy and kindly.
Nurse Palmer
Female, about forty years old, an English private nurse in the 1920s, lower-middle-class. She speaks with a plain neat southern English accent. Her voice is a soft, slightly thin mezzo. She speaks hesitantly, often trailing off. Conscientious, anxious, observant and gossipy.
Desjardeaux
Male, about fifty-five years old, a French Premier and senior government official in Europe in the 1920s, upper-class and proud. He speaks English with a clear Parisian French accent. His voice is a firm, slightly nasal baritone with a stout, well-fed chest. He speaks crisply with formal, faintly sarcastic phrasing, sceptical, dignified and easily stirred.
Felix Laon
Male, about forty-two years old, a smooth business emissary in London in the 1920s, upper-middle-class. He speaks polished, formal English with a faint French accent. His voice is a soft, light, silky tenor. He speaks slowly and smoothly, with courteous phrasing. Polite, quietly confident and unreadable.
Sonia Daviloff
Female, about twenty-six years old, a Russian émigrée caring for her uncle in London in the 1920s, educated middle-class. She speaks with a soft Russian accent, careful and formal. Her voice is a light, clear soprano. She speaks gently and evenly, lowering her voice for confidences. Polite, anxious and perceptive.
Miss Martin
Female, about thirty years old, an English stenographer in the 1920s, lower-middle-class and proud of her refinement. She speaks in a genteel, slightly affected English accent. Her voice is a bright, fluent, rather high mezzo. She talks fast and a little breathlessly. Prim, indignant and talkative.
Crowther
Male, about sixty years old, an English cabinet minister in London in the 1920s, upper-class. He speaks in clipped upper-class received pronunciation. His voice is a dry, precise, mid-high baritone, a little thin. He speaks formally at a measured pace. Official, sceptical but fair.
Robert Grant
Male, about thirty-five years old, an English manservant with a record, in the 1920s, working-class. He speaks with a Cockney accent and slang. His voice is a rough, rather nasal tenor. He speaks quickly and defensively, in broken sentences. Frightened, wary and plain-spoken.
Mrs. Halliday
Female, about thirty-three years old, an English wife and mother in 1920s London, comfortable upper-middle-class. She speaks in a clear educated English accent. Her voice is a tall, fair woman's mid-range soprano, light and slightly tense. She speaks precisely and a little fast with eagerness. Nervous, polite and anxious.
Harvey
Male, about twenty-seven years old, an English junior government official in London in the 1920s, upper-middle-class. He speaks in a crisp educated English accent. His voice is a light, bright tenor. He speaks quickly and businesslike, laughing pleasantly. Efficient, pleasant and eager.
Dr. Savaronoff
Male, about sixty-eight years old, a Russian invalid scholar and chess master living in London in the 1920s, educated upper-class. He speaks with a heavy Russian accent. His voice is a frail, dry, low rasp, slightly wheezy. He speaks slowly, formally and exactly. Precise, courtly and wary.
Halliday
Male, about thirty-eight years old, an English scientist in the 1920s, educated middle-class. He speaks with an educated English accent. His voice is a hoarse, thin, worn tenor, weakened by exhaustion. He speaks haltingly and trails off. Broken, anguished and afraid.
Gerald Paynter
Male, about twenty-four years old, an English gentleman's nephew in the 1920s, comfortable middle-class. He speaks in a casual, slightly drawling upper-middle-class English accent. His voice is a light, soft tenor, easygoing. He speaks at an easy, rambling pace. Amiable, easy-going and rather weak.
Mrs. Pearson
Female, about fifty-five years old, a London landlady in the 1920s, working-class. She speaks with a broad Cockney accent, dropping her aitches. Her voice is a hearty, round, slightly croaky contralto. She speaks fast and flustered, chattering on. Gossipy, kindly and easily excited.
Ah Ling
Male, about forty-five years old, a Chinese cook and house servant in England in the 1920s, working-class. He speaks in a Cantonese accent, in broken pidgin English, with l for r. His voice is a soft, mid-low, level voice. He speaks slowly and simply. Impassive and respectful.
Mr. McNeil
Male, about fifty-two years old, a Scottish government official in London in the 1920s, middle-class. He speaks with a Lowland Scottish accent. His voice is a dry, nasal, mid-high baritone. He speaks formally, at a brisk, polite pace. Courteous, tidy and obliging.
Dr. Treves
Male, about forty-five years old, an English country doctor in the 1920s, upper-middle-class. He speaks in a smooth educated English accent. His voice is a warm, even, rounded baritone. He speaks at an easy, reassuring pace, genial and hosting. Polished, confident and bedside-pleasant.
Dr. Quentin
Male, about thirty-five years old, an English locum doctor in the 1920s, middle-class. He speaks in a frank, educated English accent. His voice is a clear, mid-pitched, light baritone. He speaks at an easy, earnest pace. Frank, admiring and thoughtful.
Micky
A ten-year-old English boy, a doctor's household son in the 1920s, with a clear middle-class English accent. His voice is high and unbroken, light, with direct, flat energy. He is observant, blunt, resentful.

Chapters

18 chapter markers; each link opens the video on YouTube at that point.

Series

Book 5 of 34 in Hercule Poirot. 5 released so far.

Previous: The Murder of Roger Ackroyd (Book 4)

About this recording

Narrator: Told in Captain Hastings's own character voice
Runtime: 5h 49m (complete and unabridged)
Voices: 49
Channel: Full Cast Audiobooks on YouTube
Released: 9 October 2026
Updated: 9 October 2026
Author: Agatha Christie
First published: 1927
Kind: mystery novel
Source edition: Project Gutenberg eBook #70114
Public domain (US): The Big Four by Agatha Christie is in the public domain in the United States; text from Project Gutenberg.