Summarize this content to 2000 words in 6 paragraphs in Arabic Unlock the Editor’s Digest for freeRoula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter.The new BBC adaptation of Agatha Christie’s 1944 novel, Towards Zero, is a curious kind of whodunnit murder mystery, in that there isn’t a murder until halfway through the series. Director Sam Yates bills it as a “who’s-going-to-do-it” — the 1930s-set three-parter takes its time introducing the soon-to-be suspects and oblivious future victim(s) who congregate at Saltcreek, an estate perched on the scenic Devonshire coast. An enjoyably haughty Anjelica Huston plays Saltcreek’s unsmiling owner, Lady Tressilian, a reclusive shut-in who spends her days grumbling to her paid companion Mary (Anjana Vasan). That is until her nephew Nevile Strange arrives for a summer visit with both his new wife and ex-wife in tow.Nevile (Oliver Jackson-Cohen) is a famous tennis ace who recently suffered a reputational blow in another type of court when his partner Audrey (Ella Lily Hyland) sued him for divorce on the grounds of infidelity. Filled with remorse — or at least regret about which woman he chose — Nevile persuades Audrey to join him and his mistress-turned-wife Kay (Mimi Keene) on the last stop of their honeymoon. Unsurprisingly, things quickly get awkward.Also visiting Saltcreek and contributing to the tension are Mr Treves (Clarke Peters) — the executor of Lady Tressilian’s ever-changing will — and troubled soul Thomas Royde (Jack Farthing). Thomas spent his formative years in Devon and comes hoping to settle a score.A few days pass with barbed insinuations, provocations and not-so-veiled threats being exchanged in stately surroundings. A body is then discovered, bludgeoned in bed, leading to further insinuations, provocations and threats. “If I’d have killed anyone last night it would have been you,” one character says to another. It’s all very The Traitors — though never as compelling.With Marple and Poirot otherwise engaged, sleuthing duties fall to Inspector Leach (Matthew Rhys): a shambling, sad-eyed drunk who has to piece together the case while trying not to come apart himself. Leach’s predicament is also symptomatic of a show that is unsure on whether it is a cosy mystery or a darker thriller.In the end the series doesn’t really satisfy as either; it is too full of familiar plot conventions and mannered performances to leave room for rewarding complexity and too slow and sombre to really entertain. By the time you get to the big reveal, your interest may have dwindled towards zero.★★☆☆☆Episode 1 on iPlayer and on BBC1 on March 2 at 9pm; new episodes air weekly
