04/11/2013 The One Show

Hello and welcome to The One Show with Alex Jones. And Matt Baker. In

1989 the world was introduced to a perfectionist. His shoes were

polished immaculately. Anything in the least untidy tormented him.

There wasn't a speck of dust on him. Please welcome the man behind the

moustache, David Suchet. Welcome back. How lovely to see you. Have a

seat. That scene we saw of the camera, that was 24 years ago. 25

years ago. That was the very first shot I ever did in Twickenham

Studios on the very first day of the shoot. How do you feel now, David,

Poirot's television career is nearly at an end? I know, everybody is

saying you must be feeling sad? Of course I am, I am saying good night

to a dear friend. But an unexpected privilege and joy. It was never

intended I would do the whole lot when I began. I was signed up for

ten short stories. I am elated. So many others have been watching the

final episodes. Have you been watching from home? I always do. I

always have done. My wife and I sit together and watch what is before.

And then I think, will they stay with it? And then we sit and watch

it. With chocolates and wine? More on the final episodes later with an

exclusive clip thrown in. In David's, we have a couple of murder

mysteries are you at home to solve. This is the first one.

A man was found murdered on Sunday morning. His wife called the police.

The police questioned the wife and staff. The wife said she was

sleeping. The cook was cooking breakfast. The butler was getting

the post. The gardener was picking vegetables. The police instantly

arrested the murderer. Who did it, and how did they know?

Have you got it? If you are struggling, Poirot himself will

gather us together at the end of the show to reveal all. And we have more

music from Classic BRIT winner, Amy Dickson as well. David refers to

Poirot's whodunnit as how don't it. Now we have one of our own.

Something very big is approaching Britain's shores. It has travelled

15,000 miles, been battered by violent storms, but after three

months it is finally here. It is a crane! Not just any old crane, it is

one of the largest ever to be delivered to the United Kingdom. It

has travelled all the way in Shanghai to be installed alongside

seven others on the banks of the River Thames in Essex. This area is

being transformed into London Gateway, a brand-new port designed

to handle the world's biggest container ship 's. These cranes have

been engineered to lift containers from ships like this on to the

quayside, but today it is the crane itself that needs to be moved from

the ship onto the key. And all in one piece. Each crane weighs in at

nearly 2000 tonnes and standing at 138 metres high, they are taller

than the London eye. I can stretch across 25 rows of containers and

pick up 80 tonnes in one go. Normally, when you want to move a

crane, you use a bigger crane. But when the crane you are trying to use

-- move in the first place is one of the biggest in the world, you have

to think differently. Andrew is the head of engineering in charge of

this mammoth operation. Andrew, how are you going to get the crane off

the ship? The crane is jacked up on temporary rails. We create a bridge

between the land and the vessel. We get all the rails connected up and

then physically pull the crane off. As if that wasn't enough, the ship

is moving up and down with the tide, which can vary by as much as six

metres here. We need to make sure the bridge across is as level as

possible. We do that at high tide. If it is at high tide, is there a

time limit? We have about one hour to do it. And our! Correct. When

does it actually start moving? About half an hour until the tide is odd,

then off we will go. For such a gargantuan task, Andrew and his team

have a genius solution. This is a simple pulley and a bit of rope and

I will move this to move that truck. If I put that on there.

Before I start, let's see if I can move it on my own. I can barely

shift it. Now, I am going to try with the pulley. Actually, all I am

doing is changing the direction I need to pull. I am going nowhere.

Maybe I have got a pulley in the wrong place? Let's try attaching it

to the truck. Easy, one-handed. I haven't magically got stronger, I am

affect every pulling with two ropes. And that means I only have two put

in half of the effort. Half of the effort, twice as easy. The more

pulleys you have, the easier it is. It is these principles that help

Andrew shift the crane, but on a larger scale. We have one rope

connected to a winch on the vessel, comes round this pulley, back to the

other pulley. Nine loops to reduce the force which will enable the

crane to be pulled. We are at high tide, less than an hour to get this

enormous crane onto dry land. We are off! 2000 tonnes of crane are on the

move. Thanks to the police, the crane makes it onto drylands, just

in the nick of time. -- dry land. It may be one of the biggest cranes in

Britain, but we managed to get it off a bout in under 45 minutes using

pulleys and ropes. Not bad, really. I want to go and move a car with a

pulley. I really do. I am so intrigued. The first ship will

arrive on Thursday all the way from South Africa, carrying fruit. David,

we have been saying, the final episode of Poirot is next Wednesday.

The penultimate episode this Wednesday. We do not want to spoil

it, so you tell everybody. I am not allowed to tell everything, but the

book has been out since 1975. So the fans will know what happens. The

first time you seep while Roe is the only time in the whole canon where

he is a tiny, little old man in a wheelchair riddled with arthritis.

He is in a particular house, the first house Agatha Christie wrote in

the first book. It goes full circle. There is going to be

obviously a murder. He knows who the murderer is, but he cannot prove it.

He has to do something unbelievably catastrophic in the story that he

has never done before. I have two say, will never do again. Because, I

can say it is curtain. There you are. Let's have an exclusive look at

a scene where while Rowe always seems to know more than he is

letting on. I need you, to be my eyes and my ears, to go to places

where I cannot go. To sniff out the snatched conversation, report back

to me. There is amongst us, and murderer and that person must be

stopped. You just whispered to me that you cannot believe that is you?

No, when I see him - I always talk about him. I am at a distance from

him when I watch it. It is a strange feeling. He is not looking at his

best. 2.5 stone less than I am now because he is a very old man. He is

very sick with heart problems. Which is ironic, because for the rest of

the Poirot episodes you have always worn a fact suit? Yes, it is the

first episode I have ever felt my costume around my chest and my

stomach. Very strange. You do have a wonderful little trick. It is in

this little bottle. My make-up artist carries this around. Poirot

in the box always uses lavender whenever he washes his hands. He

carries a little bottle with him. Just before I shoot, if I am very

tired, the make-up lady, I will go, can I have a squirt. She comes up to

me like that and I smell it. It really invigorates me. It is

lavender. It is very nice. That was used in the last episode. And that

is what I do. Will you wear it now after Poirot is finished? Not for a

bit. It is like a very posh downstairs toilet. It is. I have

never heard it described as that. We have to reveal some Poirot secrets,

if you don't mind. We read somewhere that to perfect his walk, you walk

round and round your garden at home, and I don't know how to say

this delicately, but you had something in the cleft of your

buttocks? I am so pleased I did not have two say that. Do you mind I

said that? It is done, it is out there now. In the cleft of my

buttocks, I held very tightly, a penny. Because it made me,

seriously, it made me not be able to take long strides. If you take long

strides you drop the penny. There was a description of his walk which

I could not find for a long time. He crossed the lawn in his usual,

rapid, mincing gait. The only way I could do that, remember Laurence

Olivier when he played the Lord, he did the same thing. So I pinched his

trick. It worked. Is any of his meticulousness rubbed off on you in

everyday life? A lot of people do say they could wish -- they wish

they could live like Poirot. He is so neat and tidy. He has made me a

better listener. He actually says, I listen to what you say, but I hear

what you mean. And he really hones in on you when you are talking. He

is listening, not to what you are saying, he is trying to find what

you mean. He has taught me, not how to do that, but when you listen give

100% attention to the person who is talking. That is a lovely trait. The

final two episodes are on ITV this Wednesday and next Wednesday at 8pm.

Now it is time for our second Murder Riddle on the Orient Express. Do

play along at home. The police tell a man of his wife has been murdered

and she should return to the crime scene as soon as possible. He drops

the phone and returns. And he reaches that, he is arrested for

murder. How did the police know he had committed this crime? What do

you think? Any clue? My brain has been asleep... But yes! All will be

revealed at the end. In the drawing room with the lead pipe! It's common

knowledge that The Savoy Hotel in London is a very expensive place to

get your head down for the night. But 73 years ago a group of

Londoners with no significant shelter from the Blitz had little

choice but to invade the hotel, with dramatic results for fellow

civilians. September 1940 and London was being pounded. On the first

night of the Blitz, 2000 people were killed and by the ape-like, the mood

was grim. Amid the air raid sirens, the signs of a protest could be

fined. -- air raid. Open up the underground. For the safety of the

ordinarily, working people. Access to safe shelter was a major issue at

the start of the war. Families had a grim choice. Alex Howard within the

confines of their basement or use a shelter in the garden. You have

never heard of the invasion of the Savoy but it might have played a

crucial part in persuading the parties to open up the underground

to Londoners sheltering from the Blitz. 98-year-old Max remembers

taking part in the protest, organised by the Communist Party.

What were you protesting about? There is a difference between the

rich, who were able to get deep shelters in hotels and other places.

The part that we played was to ensure that the working people had

the same safety as the rich. On a Saturday evening, as the sirens

sounded, Max and dozens of others is through the front doors of the Savoy

Hotel, one of the glitziest hotels in London. They knew it was illegal

to turn people away during an air raid. They were not able to remove

us. Even then, because there was an air raid going on. Max and his

fellow protesters were led into the basement of the hotel. A cavernous

space were guests could shelter. Today, it is a wedding venue.

Historian Matthew suite has photographs of what the room looked

like back in 1940. Here we are. Yes. Extraordinary photographs. This

is a photograph of the ring that we are in and that scaffolding would

have been painted in Patriot collars. To make people feel more

comfortable. How many people would be accommodated? You could get more

than 100. Couldn't you? And here are these rather well-to-do guests and

these men have come down from their room. You would be in trouble if you

had a busy night! There would be people walking up and down, making

sure that you were not snoring too loudly. They would set out the

bombing in as much style as could be mustered. If you can drink a

cocktail at the Savoy during the war, maybe we will win! The invasion

was picked up by the press but not just the British? It was barely

reported here but the German press took this up for its proper value.

In the Nazi papers, a lot is made of this and there are accounts of

desperate Londoners coming here to be forced out by the police. It was

useful for propaganda. This by protesting, Max enjoyed the same

comfort that night as the hotel guests. How long did you stay? About

12 of us stayed overnight. And we had a in the morning and toast. And

it was a night when we were free from the noise and the arms. --

bombs. Max and his fellow men might not have been the only people

calling for better shelters that he believes the invasion of the Savoy

Hotel played an important part in persuading authorities that

something had to be done. It forced the government to meet the following

day. And this was a victory for the people of London. One week after the

invasion of the Savoy Hotel, Aldwych station opened as a shelter. And

that access gave the population hope that they could ensure the Blitz and

win the war. -- injury. Thank you. Gyles joins us now. After World War

II, the Savoy was used to throw a few parties for Agathe Christie?

Very lavish. And she hated all of them! She was shy. And was a famous

party, the 10th anniversary the Mousetrap, opened in 1952, the party

was at the Savoy and there she goes, and she was refused entry. She

called it hell at the Savoy. The Porter does not recognise me. He

would not let in and she had to fight her own way in. But several

other players were put on at the Savoy and when she died, aged 85,

they lowered the lights. Murder in the vicarage was the play and

honoured her. And at Saint Martin's Theatre, where the Mousetrap was

playing. She was the true queen of crime and she sold 300 million books

in her lifetime and since then, global sales are to billion. One

early on in English and 1,000,000,044 different languages.

Helped of course by David Suchet! 700 million people watched Poirot.

That is just extraordinary! I was told that recently and I cannot

believe that. 700 million. I am a theatre actor. You could not get

them in! It is extraordinary. When you think about that. She took her

mystery to her grave? She loved mystery and she took her last story

to the grave with her. It was not published until years later. She

enjoyed creating mysteries around herself. In 2020, we're coming up to

the 100th anniversary of the arrival of Miro in 1920. And we are

persuading the campaign to start tonight, to bring him out and we

shall be in touch with Agatha Christie on the other side! We will

leave you chatting! In only four days, Team Rickshaw's children in

need challenge begins at the Giant's Causeway. We have visited Bethany

and Amanda. And Daniel and Carol. Tonight we're off to get to know

Martin who, on top of the Rickshaw Challenge, has an additional

challenge all of his own. He's racing with Alex. Poor lad! Your

donations are very important and the way to do it will be on the screen

during our film. My name is Martin and I am training for the Rickshaw

Challenge. I was born without my left arm from the elbow and my right

arm from the rest. Also, my left leg stops through my knee and I have

always walked with a prostatic. I am his oldest brother and I was always

protective of him. He will not ask for help. He will do it first. And

if he struggles, he will keep trying, and then he will ask. I feel

that because I was born like this, I have simply learned like everybody

else. You just have to get on with things. My mother is quite proud of

him as well. She is emotional as well. That is my boy. Growing up to

do a big challenge like this. There is no stopping him. It is an

incredible challenge, 700 miles, that will raise an incredible amount

of money for people who really need that. It has made us very focused

and determined. Using just one league to propel yourself. It is his

determination that means he will do it. I cannot complain that I have

been selected to cycle alongside Alex Jones. But she is not committed

to the hill work! Or the night shift. She will do her best... I

have been given the training programme that myself and everyone

on the challenge must follow to ensure that we are physically fit

and we can last the full seven days. Due to my lack of arms, we have had

to have specialised handlebar is. This means that when it is my turn,

we can simply clipped them on and then we're off. -- club. Children

have sponsored us in the past so to give back, that is what we are

therefore, to raise a great amount of money for those people who

needed. I play table tennis and through the help and support my club

has given me, I have represented Scotland internationally and have

moved into presenting great at an internationally. He was aged

children, what did you think of Martin and he says, -- they say, he

is ready good. All of my friends and family think I am crazy for

undertaking such a massive challenge. 700 miles is an

incredible journey for anyone, to be on a bicycle, that is incredible. If

you put some self to something, he will do it. -- if he puts himself to

something. We need your help, so please donate. He is such A*! Thank

you so much to all of you who have donated. We really appreciate that.

Amy, would you be able to play some saxophone to accompany David's

reading of the Rickshaw Challenge donation terms and conditions?

Text messages will cost ?5 plus your standard network charge and ?5 will

go to Children in Need For full terms and conditions, visit the

website. Wasn't that lovely! Thank you! And

please do also let us know via the website or Facebook page if you've

got any fundraising events planned of your own. We'll try and stop by.

Gather around. We will reveal who the murderer is. The first clue, a

man was found murdered on Sunday morning and his wife immediately

called the police and they questioned the wife and they got

these alibis. The wife said she was sleeping. The cook was cooking

breakfast and a gardener was cooking vegetables and the police instantly

arrested the murderer... Who was at? It was the Butler because is no mail

delivered on a Sunday! And manners told his wife is murdered and he

drops the phone, gets there in 20 minutes to the crime scene. When he

gets there, they immediately arrest him. How did they know he did it? It

is so some. Because the police did not tell the husband where she was

murdered! Well done to everybody who got that. And to all of our rulers.

They were not even actors! And what is this? On your top lip? This is a

little moustache. One purpose. Movember. It will get better! That

visit. Thank very much to David. The final episodes of Poirot go out this

Wednesday and next Wednesday at 8pm. Tomorrow, Frank Skinner will be

here. But, as promised, here's the brilliant Amy Dickson to play us out

with Nocturne Number two. This is from her new special edition album,

Dusk and Dawn. Goodbye.