Dumb Witness characters

Appears from the start

The Belgian detective, drawn into the case by a letter from Emily Arundell that reaches him two months late. Her uneasy reference to a supposed accident convinces Poirot that she wanted an investigation she did not dare request openly.

Appears from the start

Poirot's English friend and the narrator of the investigation. Hastings is more willing than Poirot to accept straightforward explanations and more susceptible to a distressed relative, but he follows the case loyally.

Appears from the start

A wealthy, strong-willed elderly woman living at Littlegreen House in Market Basing. She distrusts the relatives who expect to inherit from her and is devoted to her wire-haired terrier Bob. An alarming incident prompts her to write cautiously to Poirot.

First appears in chapter 3

Emily Arundell's companion, nervous, impressionable, and accustomed to being directed by stronger personalities. She is eager to be useful and easily unsettled by conflict inside the family.

First appears in chapter 3

Emily's nephew, charming, irresponsible, and continuously in need of money. He treats his aunt's fortune as a family resource that has been unreasonably withheld and makes little effort to hide his expectations.

First appears in chapter 3

Charles's sister, elegant, restless, and also short of money despite expensive tastes. She is engaged to Dr Donaldson, whose controlled manner and serious ambitions make an odd contrast with her family.

First appears in chapter 3

Emily Arundell's niece, married to Dr Tanios and the mother of two children. Anxious and worn down, she complains of her husband's control while also appearing frightened of what separation would mean for her and the children.

First appears in chapter 3

Bella's husband, a doctor from Smyrna who has brought his family to England. Intelligent, courteous, and conscious that the Arundells distrust him as a foreigner, he tries to manage Bella's instability and the couple's financial troubles without making either public.

First appears in chapter 6

Theresa's fiance, a serious young doctor interested in research and in securing a stable future before marriage. His controlled, unemotional manner makes an odd contrast with the improvident Arundell family.

First appears in chapter 8

One of two unmarried sisters in Market Basing devoted to spiritualism and table-turning. Her seances at Littlegreen House create a strange display around Emily shortly before the older woman's death.

First appears in chapter 8

Isabel's sister and partner in spiritualist experiments. She shares Isabel's confidence in messages from beyond and her belief that the events at Littlegreen House have a supernatural explanation.

First appears in chapter 2

Emily Arundell's lively and intelligent wire-haired terrier. He is blamed for leaving a ball at the top of the stairs before his mistress fell, though he cannot give his own account of where he carried it.