DAVID SUCHET, 55,stars in the second series of the Beeb’s drama about the National Crime Squad – Britain’s FBI – NCS Manhunt. He plays emotionally repressed DIJohn Borne. Forever associated with Agatha Christie’s Hercule Poirot, he was also acclaimed for his recent role of Augustus Melmotte in BBC1’s The Way We Live Now. He is married to actress Sheila Ferris.

Criminals and policemen inhabit the same world. What separates them?

People become criminals out of a sense of need. It seems like a quick and easy way to better themselves. They think crime will pay; they don’t believe they’ll get caught.

What made John Borne a policeman?

We don’t really know but I think he was in the SAS, which gave him a sense of right and wrong; a sense of how society could be better if it rid itself of crime.

How much of his and Poirot’s emotional repression is in you?

[Laughs] Not much as an extrovert actor, I should think. But a lot of actors can be quite restrained in public. Only a few are responsible for the ‘luvvie’ name. Most of us are serious, hard-working people. There is a great deal of me that is introverted. I draw on my own strong sense of self-discipline.

Don’t you get tired of investigating murders?

I get to do so many other things. I never dreamed I’d be clearing up drugs, murder and racism in one programme.

Do crime shows increase our tolerance of crime?

I don’t know. But it’s not a new fad; it’s been with us since TV began – with Dixon Of Dock Green, for instance. The public want it and we’re ratings driven.

Isn’t that a bit of a flippant get-out clause?

I would hope not. If it is, we should seriously look at what we put on TV. Programmes make us more understanding of crime and more understanding of what goes on.I’d like to think it makes us more cautious.

Was that ever a real moustache for Poirot?

No! I stick it on with theatrical glue. It’s very hard to take off.

Never tempted to grow one?

I used to wear one but I wouldn’t dare now. Everyone would pick me up as Poirot.

Who is your favourite Belgian?

It has to be Godiva because I love the chocolate so much.

What do you make of the Lego head of you by Belgian impressionist Dirk Denoyelle?

Never! Where is this?

[Laughs] When I get home tonight I’ll look at that. My brother acquired the Spitting Image puppet of me as Poirot, which is very funny. If I manage to do all the Poirot books, it would be nice to auction it off again and give the money away.

What do you make of your image at Madame Tussaud’s?

They haven’t done me. What do you make of that? If a Belgian can do me, you’d think they could.

Yes, you’re a real cult hero. You have quite a following from Wing Commander.

Well, there was a commercial flop of a film. It could have done better at the box office but the fact that the film was made at all seems to be enough for the fans.

They made lots of action figures of the characters, too. Do you have yours?

I don’t think my character had one.

I’m seeing a theme here. What’s going on?

You tell me.

You have a big fan club…

I take it very seriously and we raise a lot of money for charity.

And Poirot has a lot of female admirers…

They do find him very attractive. I get some very odd requests. One lady just wanted to go for a walk with him so she could feel what it was like to be on the arm of a real gentleman.

What are you proudest of in your life?

That my children are well-rounded human beings – coming from a theatrical family – and that my wife and I have stayed together for 25 years. Obviously not without difficulties. We’ve kept a stable family home for us and our family.

You have a passion for canals…

Our canals are wonderful. We stopped trading on them as late as the early 1970s. They fell into disuse and the areas around them became poverty-stricken. But the recent rejuvenation is great for walkers, ramblers, and the local areas. I came down from the Midlands to Limehouse and the whole East End of London is really improved. My particular baby is the Lichfield and Hatherton canal which we stopped being divided by a motorway [www.lhcrt.org.uk]. Now the government has made a directive that no road building will impede the restoration of canals. I actually lived on a canal boat in the old British Waterways basin at Bull’s Bridge.

What’s the best thing about living in a canal boat?

Freedom. And independence.

And the worst – condensation?

Condensation needn’t apply if it’s well insulated and aired. The worst thing is the winter when your water pipes freeze. But if you suffer from rising damp, you want to leave. Quickly. [Laughs]

Where should I start?

I’ll tell you exactly – and this isn’t an advert. Go to Alvechurch Boats in Gayton [www.alvechurch.co.uk], just south of Northampton. They have an excellent, really well-managed, reasonably-priced hire fleet. That’s the way to get your toe in the water. I moored there last year and saw the way they operate and can tell you first-hand they’re a great team. And the waters around there are really beautiful. Once on a canal boat, you get a real sense of nature around you, even in cities. The old industrial canals are fascinating. Canals pass through the most glorious countryside. It won’t suit those who yearn to water-ski at 100mph. It will suit those who want to relax – chill out is the word today.

I was reading about the men who built them…

The navvies – the navigators – were the toughest of the lot. They dug them all by hand – absolutely incredible work. What a life! Imagine building tunnels, thousands of yards long, by hand. My god!

It must be hard to get the same sense of accomplishment as a actor?

It’s very hard as a performing artist. All you can do is your very best work. Our whole life is whether or not we’re judged well.You put your heart and soul into a piece of work, then worry that it won’t be appreciated and it will affect your career. You’re on quicksand. The best is when a writer rings me up and says I did a good job. Tom Sharpe was very emotional on the phone. He said he couldn’t imagine Blott as he wrote him being portrayed and I felt I had accomplished something important. When the daughter of Agatha Christie told me she thought her mother would have approved, I felt the same. I was quite emotional after that phone call. It’s not the same as building a canal or a cathedral. Two brick-layers were asked what they were doing. One said: ‘I’d put this brick here, another one on top…’ The other said: ‘I’m building a cathedral.’ It’s an attitude and your attitude to acting must not be simply: ‘Am I liked?’ For a sense of accomplishment you say: ‘I’m the middle man between the author and the public.’ (The author who writes to be seen rather than read.)