The story – first published in 1961 – will be adapted for TV by the writer Sarah Phelps, who has previously adapted Christie’s novels, And Then There Were None and The Witness For The Prosecution.

“The Pale Horse is a shivery, paranoid story about superstition, love gone wrong, guilt and grief. It’s about what we’re capable of when we’re desperate and what we believe when all the lights go out and we’re alone in the dark," says Sarah Phelps, who also serves as an executive producer.

The novel's principal narrator is Mark Easterbrook, and his name is on the list of a dead woman.

A list of names has been found in a dead woman’s shoe, and Easterbrook starts an investigation to find out how and why his name came to be on that list.

His investigation draws him to The Pale Horse, the home of a trio of rumoured witches, living in the tiny village of Much Deeping.

People whisper about the witches using the dark arts to kill off wealthy relatives, something Easterbrook initially dismisses as small-town gossip. 

But as the body count starts to mount, he starts to doubt if there is a rational explanation, but if that’s true, who could possibly want him dead?

The two-part drama will be directed by Leonora Lonsdale (Beast), and is produced by Mammoth Screen, and Agatha Christie Limited for BBC One.

Helen Ziegler, executive producer for Mammoth Screen said: “Sarah Phelps has crafted an extraordinary adaptation of Agatha Christie’s celebrated 1960s novel The Pale Horse, where the rational world and dark supernatural forces seem to collide. Asking the question, how far would you go to protect your own happiness? It’s a tale of guilt, terror and witchcraft with we hope will delight and terrify viewers in equal measure!"

Casting for the drama will be announced at a later date.