With a gentle smile and a probing mind, Agatha Christie's Miss Marple often finds herself at the center of trouble — a witness to betrayals, poisonings and all manner of mayhem. Knitting needles in hand and a cup of tea always at the ready, Marple quietly earns confidence while uncovering secrets and exposing killers.

In Series IV, the famous knitting needles change hands, passing to actress Julia McKenzie (Cranford). Stepping into the shoes of a succession of screen Marples, including Margaret Rutherford, Angela Lansbury, Joan Hickson, and Geraldine McEwan, McKenzie feels both honored and awed. "I'm very excited but also slightly daunted by the enormous responsibility that comes with taking on such an iconic role," she says. "And I suppose I'll have to remind myself how to knit!"