Editing David Suchet (section)

==Personal life==

===Family and genealogy===
In 1972, Suchet first met his wife, Sheila Ferris, at the [[Belgrade Theatre]], [[Coventry]], where they were both working; he says that he fell in love with her as soon as he saw her, and that it took a while to persuade her to go out for a meal with him.<ref name="DIDiscs DS">{{cite episode|title=Desert Island Discs with David Suchet|url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/factual/desertislanddiscs_20090208.shtml|series=Desert Island Discs|series-link=Desert IslaKnd Discs|network=[[BBC]]|station=[[BBC Radio 4|Radio 4]]|airdate=13 February 2009}}</ref> They were married on 30 June 1976; the couple have a son, Robert (b. 1981), formerly a [[Captain (British Army and Royal Marines)|captain]] in the [[Royal Marines]],<ref name="Telegraph May 2010"/> and a daughter, Katherine (b. 1983), a physiotherapist.

Suchet is the brother of [[John Suchet]], a former national news presenter for [[Five News]], and former [[ITN]] newscaster, and presenter of the evening concert on Classic FM (2020).<ref>[http://sounds.bl.uk/View.aspx?item=021M-C0459X0062XX-1300V0.xml British Library Archival Sound Recordings]. Retrieved on 13 February 2009</ref> He is the uncle of broadcaster Richard Suchet, who is the son of Suchet's younger brother, Peter. Suchet's nephew is the RT broadcaster Rory Suchet.

Suchet's maternal grandfather, [[James Jarché]], was a famous [[Fleet Street]] photographer notable for the first pictures of [[Edward VIII]] and [[Wallis Simpson]] and also for his pictures of [[Louis Blériot]] (1909) and the [[Siege of Sidney Street]]. Suchet first became interested in photography when his grandfather gave him a [[Leica M3]] camera as a present.<ref name="DIDiscs DS"/> The Jarché family was originally named Jarchy, and were Russian Jews.<ref name="ref1"/><ref name="Who"/>

Suchet's great-great-great-grandfather, George Jezzard, was a master mariner. He was captain of the brig ''Hannah'', which sank nine miles off the coast of [[Suffolk]] during a violent storm on 28 May 1860, in which more than 100 vessels sank and at least 40 people died. Jezzard and six others of his crew were saved by local rescuers just before their ship sank.<ref name="ref1"/>

===Religious beliefs===
Raised without religion, in 1986 Suchet underwent a religious conversion after having read [[Romans 8]] in his hotel room. Soon afterwards, he was baptised into the [[Church of England]].<ref name="NIV"/><ref>{{cite news |last1=Ouzounian |first1=Richard |title=David Suchet and the mystery of faith |url=https://www.thestar.com/entertainment/stage/2014/04/25/david_suchet_and_the_mystery_of_faith.html |access-date=7 May 2020 |work=[[Toronto Star]] |date=25 April 2014}}</ref> Suchet stated in an interview with ''Strand'' Magazine, "I'm a Christian by faith. I like to think it sees me through a great deal of my life. I very much believe in the principles of Christianity and the principles of most religions, actually—that one has to abandon oneself to a higher good."<ref>[http://www.strandmag.com/suchet.htm Suchet religious conversion] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150530010249/http://www.strandmag.com/suchet.htm |date=30 May 2015 }}, Strandmag.com</ref>

In 2012, Suchet made a documentary for the BBC on his personal hero, [[Saint Paul]], to discover what he was like as a man by charting his evangelistic journey around the Mediterranean.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.theaustralian.com.au/arts/television/one-for-paul/story-fncnjrwn-1226467531432|title=Profile in ''The Australian''}}</ref> In 2014, he filmed a documentary about the apostle [[Saint Peter]].<ref name="NIV"/>

In November 2012, the [[British and Foreign Bible Society|British Bible Society]] appointed David Suchet and Dr [[Paula Gooder]] as new vice-presidents. They joined the existing vice-presidents: [[John Sentamu]] ([[Archbishop of York]]), [[Vincent Nichols]] ([[Archbishop of Westminster]]), [[Barry Morgan (bishop)|Barry Morgan]] ([[Archbishop of Wales]]), [[David F. Ford]] ([[Regius Professor of Divinity]] at [[University of Cambridge|Cambridge]]), [[Joel Edwards (Evangelical Alliance)|Joel Edwards]] (International Director of [[Micah Challenge]]) and [[David Alton, Baron Alton of Liverpool|Lord Alton]] of Liverpool.<ref>{{cite web|last=Whitnall|first=Bill|title=Bible Society announce Suchet and Gooder as new VPs.|work=British Bible Society News|date=22 November 2012|url=http://www.biblesociety.org.uk/news/bible-society-announce-suchet-and-gooder-as-new-vps|access-date=2 December 2012|archive-date=2 April 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150402201509/http://www.biblesociety.org.uk/news/bible-society-announce-suchet-and-gooder-as-new-vps/|url-status=dead}}</ref> Following the time when he bade farewell to his role as Hercule Poirot, Suchet fulfilled a 27-year ambition to make an audio recording of [[The Bible]]'s [[New International Version]], which was released in April 2014.<ref name="NIV">{{cite web|last=Lodge|first=Carey|title=David Suchet: Recording the NIV Bible is my legacy|work=[[Christian Today]]|date=21 April 2014|url=http://www.christiantoday.com/article/david.suchet.recording.the.niv.bible.is.my.legacy/36866.htm|access-date=19 March 2015}}</ref>

===Political views===
In August 2014, Suchet was one of 200 public figures who were signatories to a letter to ''[[The Guardian]]'' expressing their hope that Scotland would vote to remain part of the United Kingdom in the September 2014 [[2014 Scottish independence referendum|referendum on that issue]].<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2014/aug/07/celebrities-open-letter-scotland-independence-full-text |title=Celebrities' open letter to Scotland – full text and list of signatories |work=The Guardian |location=London |date=7 August 2014 |access-date=26 August 2014}}</ref>