I went into this special with no small amount of scepticism. The original novel, The Murder of Roger Ackroyd, is one of the greatest detective stories of all time. It is also notoriously difficult to adapt to TV, largely because of its unique twist which I will not divulge here. However, I was blown away by how cleverly and also faithfully this twist, and the story as a whole, was adapted in Kuroido Goroshi.

The special's comedic tone also gave me some concerns when I saw the trailer. Again though, I was stunned by how naturally this fit the story. The cast of the special are absolutely brilliant, the writing is warm and cosy at times, and unafraid to make changes to better suit the story without in any way losing what made the original novel so special.

I wholeheartedly recommend watching for both fans of the original novel, and those who have not read the book!