David Walliams’ new Agatha Christie thriller had to halt filming when atmospheric smoke set off alarms in nearby buildings and fire engines were called to the scene.

David Walliams
(Daniel Leal-Olivas/PA Wire)

The actor and his co-stars were forced to leave the set in full costume and wait outside in the pouring rain while the fire brigade made sure it was safe to go back inside, according to Mail Online.

Filming was taking place in central London, near Chancery Lane, for the BBC adaptation of Christie novel Partners In Crime and David was spotted waiting outside in the street after the alarms went off, wearing full ’50s dress including a bow tie and white scarf as he sheltered under an umbrella.

David previously tweeted about filming in a London store.

The story is about husband and wife crime-fighting team Tommy and Tuppence who investigate mysteries at the beginning of the Cold War, and stars David alongside Jessica Raine.

Jessica Raine
(Ian West/PA Wire)

It is a six-part series due to air at the end of 2015, with the BBC granted rights to all of Christie’s work for the year that would be her 125th birthday.

David has said of the series: “In bringing these thrilling stories to the screen, it is our ambition for Tommy and Tuppence to finally take their rightful place alongside Poirot and Marple as iconic Agatha Christie characters.

“I was first drawn to the delicious notion of a married couple solving crimes together, and the more I read of the Tommy and Tuppence novels and short stories, the more I realised they are among Christie’s very best work.”