MASTERPIECE Studio: Recent Episodes
MASTERPIECE
MASTERPIECE Studio is your backstage pass to the PBS series—from Sherlock to Poldark. After the show, turn off the TV and tune in to MASTERPIECE Studio for the scoop with host Jace Lacob. Listen for exclusive interviews with the cast and crew of your favorite shows. Get the history lowdown behind the people and places you see on screen, and hear revealing stories from the set. MASTERPIECE Studio is made possible by Viking Cruises and Raymond James. Sponsors for MASTERPIECE on PBS are Viking Cruises, Raymond James, and The MASTERPIECE Trust.
At the end of Season 4 of Unforgotten DCI Cassie Stuart, played by Nicola Walker, tragically died in a car accident, sending shockwaves out to the other characters, actors, and viewers alike. But Sunny Khan is hit especially hard, given his close working relationship with Cassie. Sanjeev Bhaskar joins us to discuss how Sunny deals with this change, and what struggles and triumphs might lie ahead for his character this season.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode One of 'Little Women'.
This is an encore release of an earlier podcast episode.
Dame Angela Lansbury was an acting icon for more than 75 years. Her credits spanned from Gaslight, Mame, and Murder, She Wrote to Beauty and the Beast and Little Women. She died in October 2022, and left behind a rich legacy of characters that are as iconic and memorable as the actor herself. As PBS re-broadcasts MASTERPIECE’s 2018 production of Little Women, we thought we’d revisit our 2018 conversation with her as she takes us through highlights of her prodigious career and reveals what she learned on the "Little Women" set.
WARNING: This episode contains spoilers for the series finale of Endeavour.
For over a decade, lead actor Shaun Evans has starred as Endeavour Morse. We’ve watched him transform from the young, talented and eager Morse, into the gruff, solitary, and brilliant Morse character portrayed by John Thaw in the original Inspector Morse series. As this series draws to a satisfying conclusion, Shaun Evans joins us to reflect on this final season, and why it felt like the right time to say goodbye to Endeavour.
After 11 years of murder, mystery, and mystifying crossword puzzles, we’ve come to the final season of Endeavour. This episode is from a live conversation our host, Jace Lacob, had with Morse himself — star, director and producer Shaun Evans — during PBS’s virtual Endeavour event.
WARNING: This episode contains spoilers for Endeavour Seasons 1-8.
As Endeavour fans will know, this show packs its fair share of clever and unpredictable details into every episode. So, let’s make sure we’re all caught up on every clue, every chance meeting, and every furtive glance as we gear up for the final season of Endeavour on this special recap episode of MASTERPIECE Studio.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Six of Magpie Murders.
We’re of course bound to remind listeners not to listen to episodes like this until they watch all of the related Mystery! series — but after you do, you’ll definitely want to come back. Magpie Murders creator, writer and executive producer Anthony Horowitz and series star Lesley Manville return to the podcast to discuss the surprising finale, and perhaps even give Susan Ryeland and Atticus Pünd fans something to look forward to.
Warning: The episode contains spoilers for episode five of Magpie Murders.
Actor Tim McMullan had worked with author and screenwriter Anthony Horowitz before, but never on a title as wild as the adaptation of his own Magpie Murders. As Atticus Pünd — a fictional detective who solves murders both real and imaginary — McMullan has great fun gently ribbing the classic whodunnit format.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Five of the First Season of Miss Scarlet and the Duke.
This is an encore release of an earlier podcast episode.
A female private detective in Victorian London seems anachronistic — but Eliza Scarlet more than holds her own on the grimy streets of the British capitol. Kate Phillips is a witty delight in the title role, and she brings that zest to the MASTERPIECE Studio podcast.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Three of the Second Season of Miss Scarlet and the Duke.
The witty banter and serialized crime-of-the-week format of Miss Scarlet and the Duke give viewers a regular pivot between the expected and the extraordinary. That span was exactly what series creator and executive producer Rachael New aimed for when she put together the show, and she explains the origin story and looks ahead in a new conversation.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for episode two of Magpie Murders.
Lesley Manville is in high demand lately for her excellent work on screen, so it seems only fitting that she come to the MASTERPIECE screen in the role of brilliant editor Susan Ryeland in the twisty mystery of Magpie Murders. Manville explores what drew her to the role, and where she stands in her storied career.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode One of Magpie Murders.
Anthony Horowitz has written dozen of books and scores of television dramas in his lengthy career, but the task of transforming his meta mystery novel, Magpie Murders — a crime novel about writing and publishing crime novels — was especially tricky. Fortunately for MASTERPIECE viewers, the resulting series is a delight, and the author explains the tricky choices he made to bring Susan Ryeland and Atticus Pünd to the screen.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Six of the Seventh Season of Grantchester.
As the seventh season of Grantchester comes to a surprisingly satisfying close, fans can be assured that the eighth season of the series is just over the horizon. Series creator and head writer Daisy Coulam and series lead — and director! — Tom Brittney return to the podcast to wrap up and look ahead .
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Five of the Seventh Season of Grantchester.
The stubborn Mrs. C — Sylvia Chapman — is a centerpiece of the Grantchester family. Her unexpected medical troubles this seventh season leave her and the entire vicarage at a loss. Fortunately, Tessa Peake-Jones is more than able to find the emotional center of her character's difficult moments.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Four of the Seventh Season of Grantchester.
There's a rotating cast of murderers — and murder victims — on every episode of Grantchester. But where do the actors come from who populate the Cambridgeshire rogues’ gallery? Longtime series casting director Alex Irwin reveals how she casts a show.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Three of the Seventh Season of.
Grantchester lead Tom Brittney already took a big leap in leading a series after a beloved main character left — and now, he takes on a new challenge in directing that show, too. The actor and director returns to the podcast for a very cinematic conversation about where he draws inspiration behind and in front of the camera.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Two of the Seventh Season of Grantchester.
Maybe it’s the season, maybe it’s real-world changes, maybe it’s the tide — but Grantchester head writer and series creator Daisy Coulam feels a positive vibe in the seventh iteration of her character-driven murder mystery. True, there’s still murder — but things are looking up for Will, Geordie and their found families.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode One of Ridley Road.
Both sides of Sarah Solemani’s family have roots in the Ridley Road area of London, so when she read author Jo Bloom’s haunting novel, Ridley Road, she saw personal elements in the story. Still, the narrative on screen in her new miniseries — a young Jewish woman caught up in anti-fascist espionage — casts a wider and more thrilling net.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Six of the Second Season of Sanditon.
Charlotte Heywood is finally able to properly grieve her sense of loss, but the choices she makes at the end of this second season are surprising, to say the least. Rose Williams is ready for the story still to come in season three.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Five of the Second Season of Sanditon.
Sanditon's Crystal Clarke opens up about the journey that she and the series' creators undertook to give her West Indian heiress character, Miss Georgiana Lambe, a richer and more authentic development in this second season of the show.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Four of the Second Season of Sanditon.
Alison Heywood is a newcomer to the up and coming resort town of Sanditon, and like her older sister Charlotte before her, she finds the entire experience to be a thrill. Rosie Graham is also new to the scene, and she used Alison's love of romantic novels and poetry to find the character's plucky drive.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Three of the Second Season of Sanditon.
The Lady Esther Babington that returns to Sanditon is a softer, more open-minded woman than the biting character we knew before. Granted, her razor sharp wit remains, but Charlotte Spencer is glad to guide her character to a more loving place of grace this season.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Two of the Second Season of Sanditon.
Arthur Parker is the life of any party in Sanditon — and much of that has to do with the charm of actor Turlough Convery. While much of his castmates would love to play his role, Convery brings a special approach to the happy youngest Parker sibling.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode One of the Second Season of Sanditon.
Sanditon head writer Justin Young is as thrilled as you are to return to the most desirable destination on the south English coast. He returns to the podcast as well for a preview of a second season of romance and intrigue, and offers his thanks to the passion and commitment of the series' many active fans.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Seven of the Second Season of All Creatures Great and Small.
The final episode of the second season of All Creatures Great and Small is both heartbreaking and heartwarming at the same time. That delicate balance is thanks to the work of series lead Nicholas Ralph, who feels right at home in the Yorkshire Dales. With two more seasons of the series on the way, Ralph looks ahead to the next chapter.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Six of the Second Season of All Creatures Great and Small.
At the end of another season of All Creatures Great and Small, Helen Alderson is still thinking about marriage — but now in an entirely new light. Rachel Shenton takes a sensible, sensitive approach to her character, and she explains some of Helen's hopes and fears after a busy season on the Dales.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Four of the Second Season of All Creatures Great and Small.
The Brothers Farnon have a fraught relationship — but viewers can rest assured that the actors who play them don't have those struggles. Samuel West and Callum Woodhouse return to the podcast to explain how they locate that family tension on screen.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Three of the Second Season of All Creatures Great and Small.
The All Creatures Great and Small cast sadly had to say goodbye to the remarkable Dame Diana Rigg after the first season of the series. Luckily for them — and for all of us — the phenomenal Patricia Hodge slips into the elegant role of Mrs. Pumphrey with a practiced ease. Hodge explores Darrowby, theatre and Derek in a new interview.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Two of the Second Season of All Creatures Great and Small.
In a buzzy new season of All Creatures Great and Small, the sassy divorcée, Diana Brompton, is a breath of fresh air. So, too, is actor Dorothy Atkinson, who brings her peppy charm to the podcast.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode One of the second season of All Creatures Great and Small.
The soothing, gentle nature of All Creatures Great and Small renders the pain and struggles of ordinary life in warm, calming tones. Much of that comes from the series' original author, Alf Wight, but it also comes from executive producer and head writer Ben Vanstone. He explains how he plans each cycle of the show — and his genuine, real life love of animals.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode One of Around the World in 80 Days.
The fabulously talented David Tennant is well known to MASTERPIECE viewers — he hosted MASTERPIECE Contemporary more than a decade ago, and has appeared on plenty of MASTERPIECE and MASTERPIECE Mystery! titles throughout the years — but his role in the sweeping new adaptation of Jules Vernes' Around the World in 80 Days is a thrilling return to form. Tennant previews the ongoing series, and looks ahead to the rest of the quest to come in a new conversation.
There's romance afoot on the Sanditon shores, with five new male characters heading to the resort in the upcoming second season. Who are these new male characters, and where are they looking for love? And what does it mean to be a Man of Sanditon — an Austen romantic hero? We find out in the final Making Sanditon preview podcast.
While we’re all looking forward to the return to Sanditon, there’s no one more excited than than the talented young actor who plays Charlotte Heywood, Rose Williams. Williams returns to the MASTERPIECE Studio podcast to look ahead at the second and third seasons of the series and offer a hint of what’s still to come for the adventurous Charlotte.
You already know that Sanditon is coming back to PBS screens — but just what will happen in the seaside resort when the curtain finally raises after two years of waiting? A few members of the series’ creative team explore the stories still to come on the upcoming second and third seasons in the first of three special preview podcast episodes from MASTERPIECE Studio.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Eight of the Sixth Season of Grantchester.
As Grantchester wraps its serialized sixth season, series creator Daisy Coulam is already hard at work on the seventh season. Among other new elements, the upcoming season features a new director at the helm — series star Tom Brittney. Coulam and Brittney preview the new season, and unpack the season that just closed, in a new podcast.
MASTERPIECE Studio and GBH bring you a preview episode of a new podcast and documentary film series: American Veteran.
In war and in peace, what veterans have done in America’s name is woven into the fabric of the American story. The new PBS series, American Veteran, illuminates their experiences with a stunning range of veterans’ voices, presented in a nine-part podcast.
Each episode of the podcast revolves around the direct testimony of a single veteran - from a Coast Guard gunner’s mate who manned a landing craft at Omaha Beach on D-Day, to an Army cook in Iraq who became the first Black American woman held as a POW; from an Army nurse in Vietnam who struggled to do her part to a satellite technician who served as a gay man during the Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell era. This collection of riveting first-person stories provides a compelling portrait of the veteran experience across multiple generations.
The series is hosted by Phil Klay, a Marine Corps veteran featured in the “American Veteran” television series and author of the National Book Award-winning collection of short stories, “Redeployment.”
American Veteran: Unforgettable Stories drops on Tuesdays, October 19 – December 14.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Six of the Sixth Season of Grantchester.
The police force in Grantchester is all men — with the notable exception of the sixth season's bright new regular, the sassy secretary, Miss Scott. Melissa Johns' snappy assistant can match wits with the best of them, and the actor and disability advocate reveals how she does it in a new conversation.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Three of the Second Season of Baptiste.
The brilliant Fiona Shaw is already a regular guest on MASTERPIECE programs, but this is her first interview on MASTERPIECE Studio — a format that she takes to with ease, like so much else in her storied career. In the challenging second season of Baptiste, Shaw plays Emma Chambers, the no-nonsense British Ambassador to Hungary, who more than holds her own with inspector Julien Baptiste.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for the third episode of the sixth season of Grantchester.
After six seasons in a single role, you might think Al Weaver has fully centered his performance as literary village curate, Leonard Finch. But in this serialized sixth season, there's still emotional and dramatic depth to uncover, which Weaver does with great skill. Weaver explains what he's learned about himself in playing Leonard, and what it felt like to film in the midst of a pandemic.
Warning: This podcast contains spoilers for the first episode of the sixth season of Grantchester.
In the six seasons of Grantchester, the action has mainly centered on the titular village, along with crime in nearby Cambridge. For the first episode of series six, executive producer Emma Kingsman-Lloyd and head writer Daisy Coulam shift the action to a nostalgic British holiday camp — with murder and drama to spare.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episodes Three and Four of the First Season of Guilt.
In Guilt, Mark Bonnar’s snide, crafty Max is far from sympathetic. But the veteran actor thinks even Max is redeemable in the end. Bonnar talks Max and making this season — and the next — of Guilt in a new conversation.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episodes One and Two of the First Season of Guilt.
Guilt stars Jamie Sives and Mark Bonnar are old friends from high school, so it isn't hard to imagine them as their bickering on-screen characters. Sives explores the intricacies of the series’ tricky plot and more in a new interview.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Six of the Fourth Season of Unforgotten.
The truly tragic ending of the fourth season of Unforgotten made series creator and head writer Chris Lang tear up as he wrote it. Lang talks through the twisty fourth season of his series, and looks ahead to what's in store for the planned fifth season of his modern day crime drama.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Two of Us.
Douglas Petersen is prickly. The biochemist and father of one is picky, nervous and reluctant to change his mind. Tom Hollander sees his job as the actor playing a character like Douglas is, in part, to make him relatable — which he does, of course, in spades. Hollander talks Douglas, Us and how to find the humanity and the humor in a difficult role.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode One of Us.
The sun-dappled European exploits of Douglas and Connie Petersen and their son, Albie, in Us mask a shifting truth at the heart of their gradually crumbling marriage. As Connie, MASTERPIECE favorite Saskia Reeves is a joy to behold, and she brings that spark to a new interview.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Eight of Atlantic Crossing.
As Atlantic Crossing comes to a close, series creator, co-writer and director Alexander Eik joins lead actors Sofia Helin and Kyle MacLachlan for an intimate exploration of the truth behind the fictionalized historical drama. Though Crown Princess Martha never became Queen, her story still has impact today.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Four of Atlantic Crossing.
The chance to play legendary American President Franklin Delano Roosevelt was one big reason for Kyle MacLachlan to sign on to Atlantic Crossing. But it was the story of the young Norwegian Royal Family at the heart of the miniseries that made him commit to the role. MacLachlan explores Roosevelt, Agent Dale Cooper and wine with lifelong Twin Peaks fan, MASTERPIECE Studio host Jace Lacob.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Two of Atlantic Crossing.
Norwegian Crown Princess Martha was born in Sweden, but Swedish actor Sofia Helin didn't know her story until she signed on to play the quiet Royal in Atlantic Crossing. But after coming on board the miniseries, Helin helped shape the story of the little-known Princess, bringing a surprising light to her powerful story. Helin talks royalty, FDR, and Saga Noren of Broen in a new interview.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode One of Atlantic Crossing.
For American viewers, the story of Norway's Crown Princess Märtha is likely mostly unknown. But the Crown Princess' World War II influence was a surprise even for Atlantic Crossing co-writer and director Alexander Eik, who spent almost seven years researching his miniseries. Eik explains how he found the key to Märtha's story, and what viewers should anticipate in the next seven episodes, in a new interview.
Even if you haven't been watching MASTERPIECE every Sunday for the past 50 years, there's a very good chance you tuned in to watch Downton Abbey. The six-season epic brought renewed attention to the drama anthology series when it first aired more than a decade ago, and we look back at the interconnected lives of the Crawley clan and their servants with a few of the people who helped the title turn heads and claim awards. And in this final episode of our three-part docuseries, we explore how MASTERPIECE might continue to evolve for the next 50 years, tackling the challenges and opportunities still ahead.
We speak with Julian Fellowes, Hugh Bonneville, Elizabeth McGovern, Lily Collins and more. See our website, pbs.org/makingmasterpiece for a detailed transcript, complete with references and links.
Masterpiece Theatre enters its third decade and settles in under its third executive producer, Rebecca Eaton, as new challenges pop up to make the Boston-based anthology series' life a touch more difficult. Cable TV competition, shifting public taste and limited funding lead Eaton and her team to make dramatic changes at the dawn of the new century. Fortunately for public TV viewers, those changes come just in time to scoop up some unlikely new hits — from Middlemarch and The Buccaneers to Prime Suspect and beyond, including a certain family drama set in a fancy Yorkshire estate...
In this second episode of Making MASTERPIECE, hear from Rufus Sewell, Laura Linney, Alan Cumming, Andrew Davies, Charles Dance and many more. See our website, pbs.org/makingmasterpiece, for a full transcript with links.
Five decades is a long time for any television series to air, but when a show hits 50, it's possible some people might start asking questions about where it all started. That's where this podcast comes in. Fifty years ago, a group of public television producers in Boston had the inspired idea to import British costume drama for American audiences. But they didn't come up with the idea on their own — there's a former FCC Chair, a popular soap opera, and a Polaroid exec with Julia Child's The French Chef on his mind involved, too. For three episodes, Making MASTERPIECE will show how the most unexpected and unlikely of series — Masterpiece Theatre — grew into one of the longest-running primetime television icons of all time. What are its origins? What actors, writers, and executives shaped its trajectory? How has it overcome numerous challenges? And what does it have in store for its future, 50 years on?
In this first episode, that origin story, featuring interviews with the series’ original executive producer, Sir Derek Jacobi, Glenda Jackson, former FCC Chairman Newton Minow and dozens more besides. See our website, pbs.org/makingmasterpiece, for a full transcript with links.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Seven of the First Season of All Creatures Great and Small.
Now that the first season of All Creatures Great and Small has come to a close, what should viewers expect in the already-confirmed second season? Series star Nicholas Ralph returns to the podcast for a quick look back on season one, and an exclusive preview of the season rapidly on the way!
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Seven of the First Season of All Creatures Great and Small.
Helen Alderson takes care of almost everyone in the farming village of Darrowby — but actor Rachel Shenton thinks the confirmed second season of All Creatures Great and Small should give Helen some time for herself. Shenton defends her character's choices and praises her costumes in a new interview.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Three of The Long Song.
The story of Miss July is ultimately a story of strength and perseverance following years of trauma and pain. Lead actor Tamara Lawrance brings strength to her portrayal of July, who goes from slave to memoirist in colonial British Jamaica. Lawrance reflects on the role, and the hope of The Long Song, in a new interview.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Five of the First Season of Miss Scarlet and the Duke.
A female private detective in Victorian London seems anachronistic — but Eliza Scarlet more than holds her own on the grimy streets of the British capitol. Kate Phillips is a witty delight in the title role, and she brings that zest to the MASTERPIECE Studio podcast.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Five of the First Season of All Creatures Great and Small.
Even casual viewers of All Creatures Great and Small can see the obvious head honcho in Skeldale House — the unshakeable Audrey Hall. Series star Anna Madeley relishes playing the role, and she joins the podcast to reveal a bit of the confident Mrs. Hall's inner grit and grace.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Four of the First Season of All Creatures Great and Small.
Dame Diana Rigg has been a MASTERPIECE regular for decades. From her Emmy Award-winning role in the 1997 adaptation of Rebecca to her years-long host duty on Mystery!, Rigg brought her charm and considerable gravitas to PBS TV screens for years. Rigg passed away in September 2020, making her role as the elegant Mrs. Pumphrey one of her very last. The All Creatures Great and Small cast pays tribute to Rigg, along with some of her other MASTERPIECE friends and castmates.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Three of the First Season of All Creatures Great and Small.
Siegfried Farnon is a difficult man to live with — and Donald Sinclair, the real life Yorkshire veterinarian he's based on, was just as unusual. Actor Samuel West used Alf Wight's memoir series and personal anecdotes from those who knew Sinclair to build his character, and he shares some of those stories in a new podcast interview.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Two of the First Season of All Creatures Great and Small.
MASTERPIECE fans already know Callum Woodhouse for his role as the shotgun-happy middle Durrell sibling, Leslie Durrell. Now, he's back on our screens in a different bucolic locale of the 1930s — the gorgeous Yorkshire Dales, playing the dastardly Tristan Farnon. Woodhouse promises he didn't plan it this way, but we're glad to have him on air and here on the podcast.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode 1 of the First Season of All Creatures Great and Small.
In MASTERPIECE's warmhearted new adaptation of the Alf Wight — aka James Herriot — All Creatures Great and Small memoir series, it's not just the series that's brand new. Lead actor Nicholas Ralph is making his screen debut as young veterinarian James Herriot, and he joins the MASTERPIECE Studio podcast to preview the season and animals antics still to come.
Making MASTERPIECE is the full story of how public media’s favorite place for the best of British drama went from crazy idea to a franchise 50 years strong. Hosted by MASTERPIECE Studio host Jace Lacob, the three-part documentary miniseries features the inside scoop on everything from Downton Abbey to Upstairs, Downstairs, and everything in between. Featuring exclusive interviews with MASTERPIECE favorites like Rufus Sewell, Lily Collins, Alan Cumming, Laura Linney, Charles Dance and many more, Making MASTERPIECE launches February 28, 2021. Making MASTERPIECE will appear in the MASTERPIECE Studio podcast feed on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher or wherever you listen to podcasts.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Elizabeth is Missing.
It's not many actors who can appear in the very first season of a television anthology series, win not one but two Emmy Awards for the role, and then take a 50 year break before coming back for more. Glenda Jackson is one such actor, and her appearance in Elizabeth is Missing is just as powerful as any other in her storied career. Jackson talks politics and passion in a new podcast interview.
With new series, old favorites and even a documentary podcast special on the way for MASTERPIECE's upcoming 50th Anniversary Golden Jubilee Season, our executive producer Susanne Simpson joins the conversation for a special preview of the drama, mystery and more to come in a few short weeks.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Four of the First Season of Roadkill.
Well, who would have thought it would all end like that? Sir David Hare gives the inside scoop on the political realities of his Roadkill series, and talks through how his own Covid-19 diagnosis was inspiration for a gripping new play.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Two of the First Season of Roadkill.
The role of a special adviser in British politics is complicated — but Roadkill star Iain de Caestecker does quick work of explaining the job, and his character, Duncan Knock, in a charming interview. As to whether or not viewers should trust Duncan? Well, that's still a secret.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode One of the First Season of Roadkill.
Sir David Hare plays coy when asked who the slick MP Peter Laurence is meant to be in contemporary British politics. "I've drawn a politician who is charismatic, popular, forward-looking, and highly intelligent," he says, and Hare struggles to find such a figure in politics today. Hear more about the inspirations for Roadkill in a new interview.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Four of the First Season of Flesh and Blood.
Sarah Williams is the kind of screenwriter who knows where she's going when she starts writing a script. But sometimes, a character insists on taking the story in a different angle, and Imelda Staunton's timid Mary was exactly that kind of character. Williams shows where Mary took her, and us, in a new podcast after the dramatic conclusion of Flesh and Blood.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Three of the First Season of Flesh and Blood.
Russell Tovey can't come up with a defense for the toxic masculinity of his character, Jake, a stunted manchild in his 30s searching for purpose in a world he feels should fall at his feet. But the actor loved having the opportunity to play Jake, even if he keeps viewers and listeners guessing about what happens in the final episode of this intricate family drama.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Two of the First Season of Flesh and Blood.
Viewers of this intricate family drama might still be searching for answers, and Flesh and Blood star Lydia Leonard could easily put the mystery to rest in a new podcast interview. Fortunately, the talented actor keeps viewers and listeners on their toes in a new conversation, leaving a few tantalizing crumbs as clues.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode One of the First Season of Flesh and Blood.
The new Flesh and Blood defies genres — it's a mystery, and a family drama, and a psychological case study. That contrast originally drew series lead Claudie Blakley to the script, but it doesn't mean she's willing to give anything up in a new interview.
Hello again, MASTERPIECE Studio Fans. Jace Lacob here. Today I’m excited to share a special preview episode of a new podcast called DETOURS from GBH and PRX.
DETOURS is a podcast about what happens to all that stuff on America’s favorite antiques show after the cameras leave town. Join host Adam Monahan, a longtime producer for GBH’s Antiques Roadshow, on a journey of discovery with stories of sales, fakes, and yes, even federal crimes.
This first episode feels like it could even be one of our own Mystery! series...about JFK and the PT-109...happy listening! And stay tuned for new MASTERPIECE Studio episodes October 4!
Hi MASTERPIECE Studio fans. Jace Lacob here. Today I’m excited to share a special preview episode of a new podcast from our friends at the PBS Science series, NOVA.
NOVA Now is a new bi-weekly podcast diving into the science behind the headlines. Join host Alok Patel behind the scenes with the scientists, engineers, technologists, mathematicians and more working to better understand our world.
Now it’s more critical than ever to distinguish fact from fiction and find science-based answers to the most pressing questions of our time. Enjoy this episode of NOVA Now…And stay tuned for new MASTERPIECE Studio episodes October 4!
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Six of the Fifth Season of Grantchester.
The brilliant team who help create the world of Grantchester reunite in a special bonus podcast episode to explore the themes and characters who made the fifth season sparkle. Plus, creator Daisy Coulam offers some tantalizing hints of the just-confirmed sixth season on the way.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Six of the Fifth Season of Grantchester.
With a toast, a birthday and gentle ribbing, we come to a close on Grantchester's fifth season. But that's not all for series stars Tom Brittney and Robson Green, who join the podcast for a special season wrap-up — with previews of the sixth season yet on the horizon.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode 5 of the Fifth Season of Grantchester.
A stunning revelation in the village of Grantchester leaves everybody at a loss for words — but Grantchester series creator Daisy Coulam was plotting this moment the entire season. Coulam returns to the podcast for a conversation about change, growth and thematic consistency in her charming series.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Four of the Fifth Season of Grantchester.
Ellie Harding is a bold newcomer on the Grantchester green, digging for front page scoops in the murderous little village. Actor Lauren Carse loved Ellie's modern, career-minded character, and she joined the podcast for a conversation on romance, rumors and Meryl Streep.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Three of the Fifth Season of Grantchester.
After a particularly cinematic episode of Grantchester, we head behind the camera for a conversation with episode director Christiana Ebohon-Green. With hints of classic film noir and Hollywood's golden age sprinkled throughout a classic picture house crime scene, Ebohon-Green reveals where she and the creative team turned for inspiration.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode 2 of the Fifth Season of Grantchester.
The quiet charm of Leonard Finch and Daniel Marlowe's blossoming romance has been an unexpected highlight of the last few seasons of Grantchester. Even actor Ollie Dimsdale, who brings Daniel to life, is surprised by the strength of his character's long-running narrative arc. He explores the past — and future — here.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode 1 of the Fifth Season of Grantchester.
It's the fifth season of Grantchester, and series lead Tom Brittney is firmly in control in his role as Rev. Will Davenport. He's also — in a change — in control of his on-screen motorcycle, having finally obtained his bike license. He joins the podcast for a look ahead on the season on the way.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Seven of the First Season of World On Fire.
After a stunning season one finale, World On Fire lead Zofia Wichłacz and series creator Peter Bowker return for another new podcast conversation, wrapping up the drama of season one and looking forward to the thrill of the second season already in the works.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Six of the First Season of World on Fire.
In the international cast of World On Fire, Nancy Campbell and her nephew, Webster O’Connor, are two Americans facing the perils of a looming war. Actor Brian J. Smith found something of himself in the romantic character he plays on the series, and he shared stories from set in a new interview.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Five of the First Season of World On Fire.
During World War II, Julia Brown's grandmother was a jazz singer, which gave the World On Fire star a broad starting point for her fiercely independent character, Lois Bennett. But in Brown's hands, Lois is a strong and sharply independent young woman looking for adventures of her own.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Three of the First Season of World On Fire.
A World War II documentary helped spur Peter Bowker to create his multi-layered, international drama, World On Fire. With a season of the series dedicated to every year of the global war, the creator offers new insight into his first year, and subtle previews of the season still on the horizon.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Two of the First Season of World On Fire.
From a summer romance in beautiful prewar Warsaw to a rebel resistance in the rubble of her struggling city at war, young Polish waitress Kasia Tomaszeski has seen a life's worth of trauma in a few brief episodes. Actor Zofia Wichłacz was prepared for the dark role, but warns in a new interview — there's still more pain to come for Kasia.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode One of the First Season of World On Fire.
If World On Fire's Nancy Campbell seems familiar, it's more than just the fact that she is played by Academy Award-winning actor Helen Hunt. The no-nonsense war correspondent was based in part on the legendary Clare Hollingworth, and in this special episode of the podcast, we share Hollingworth's own memories of the German invasion of Poland in 1939.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode One of Beecham House.
Fillmmaker Gurinder Chadha brings a keen eye to her multigenerational Indian drama, Beecham House. And the family story isn’t just in front of the camera — her husband, Paul Mayeda Berges, created and produced the series with her, and the couple’s twins appear as royal characters. The entire historical costume drama is now available for binge viewing on PBS Passport, and Chadha previews the story for MASTERPIECE viewers in a new podcast conversation.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Eight of the First Season of Sanditon* *
Actor Anne Reid is quick to remind anyone listening that her Sanditon character, Lady Denham, is a terrible, grouchy miser. But the actor herself is anything but, and her interview here is a charming farewell to the first season of the series.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Seven of the First Season of Sanditon.
Screenwriter Andrew Davies has already adapted Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice, Sense and Sensibility, Northanger Abbey, and Emma for television — but his new iteration of the author's tragically unfinished final novel, Sanditon is a creation distinctly his own. Davies reveals how he found the plot in Austen's 24,000-word fragment, and what he embellished on his own in creating the new series.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Six of the First Season of Sanditon.
For the first time since her journey from Willingden, Charlotte Haywood leaves the town of Sanditon, heading to London in pursuit of her kidnapped friend, Miss Georgiana Lambe. Series stars Theo James, Rose Williams and Crystal Clarke join Sanditon creator Andrew Davies in a special podcast episode exploring the misty streets of Regency-era London, and offering previews of the final two episodes on the way.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Five of the First Season of Sanditon.
Esther Denham has few friends in Sanditon, and even her wolfish step-brother, Sir Edward, seems to prefer the company of others more than he does his sharp-tounged step-sister. So it's a charming surprise to speak with actor Charlotte Spencer, who truly is everything that Esther is not.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Four of the First Season of Sanditon.
In a special bonus episode of MASTERPIECE Studio, Sanditon stars Rose Williams and Crystal Clarke reunite in the studio to answer a few of your viewer questions about the series, their friendship and the difficulties of wearing Regency-era corsets.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Four of the First Season of Sanditon.
Crystal Clarke is not the first major character of color to appear in a MASTERPIECE production — but the American-born actor thinks it’s high time more period dramas offered a broader range of history than currently on view. Clarke talks pineapples, codeswitching and the sadness of Miss Lambe in a brand new interview.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Three of the First Season of Sanditon.
The dashing Sidney Parker floats in and out of his brother Tom's seaside enterprise of Sanditon with barely a word besides. But Theo James — already a MASTERPIECE fan favorite from his memorable role in the first season of Downton Abbey — has plenty to say about this new series and his character's seemingly icy resolve.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episodes One and Two of the First Season of Sanditon.
As she prepared for her role as the ambitious Charlotte Heywood in MASTERPIECE’s Sanditon, actor Rose Williams went deep into Jane Austen’s literary catalogue of heroines. Her Charlotte is an entirely new creation, and one that both respects the Austen pantheon and brings new light to familiar literary tropes. Williams previews the exciting series to come, and gives special insight to this story by the sea.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Eight of the Fifth Season of Poldark.
For Poldark creator, writer and executive producer Debbie Horsfield, there was never any question as to whether or not the original Ross Poldark, Robin Ellis, would come back for the series finale of her adaptation of Winston Graham's novels. Horsfield and Ellis both say goodbye to Ross and company in a final podcast episode.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Seven of Season Five of Poldark.
Catherine Despard was a real-life abolitionist and activist whose story is often ignored in the history books. That sense of responsibility gave actor Kerri McLean a real motivation in her performance as Kitty in this final season of Poldark.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Six of Season Four of The Durrells in Corfu.
After four years and four seasons of television, Louisa, Larry, Leslie, Margo and Gerry Durrell are leaving Corfu. It's a departure that's true to life, like much of the sunny series, and actors Callum Woodhouse, Daisy Waterstone and Milo Parker join The Durrells in Corfu creator Simon Nye to reflect on the fantastic family at the heart of it all.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Five of Season Five of Poldark.
During his time living with his sister, Demelza and his brother-in-law, Ross, Drake Carne has come close to death many times. After years of struggle and strife, however, things finally seem to be looking up for the earnest blacksmith. Actor Harry Richardson sees his constantly optimistic character as most similar to a well-meaning, but utterly inept labrador puppy. He defends his quasi-canine counterpart in a new interview.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Four of Season Five of Poldark.
Prudie Paynter might be the world's most ineffective housemaid, but she's a loyal friend and a true source of humor, both on screen and off. Actor Beatie Edney has made a name for herself on the Poldark set as one to drive her fellow castmates into laughter mid-scene. Edney might pretend to be serious, but her interview proves she can make anybody laugh.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Three of Season Five of Poldark.
Jack Farthing's Sir George Warleggan is the obvious villain in Poldark, and he brings his share of villainy to this final season of the series. But for Farthing, Sir George's complicated response to personal trauma has lent his portrayal a surprising human layer that the actor reveals in a new interview.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Two of Season Five of Poldark.
Actor Heida Reed played Elizabeth in the first four seasons of Poldark, but her character's early death in childbirth was a tragic ending to the fourth season. So her spectral appearance in Sir George Warleggan’s grief-stricken mind this season was a welcome surprise for Elizabeth's fans. Reed joins the podcast to discuss how it felt to return to set as an idealized and imaginary Elizabeth.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode One of Season Four of The Durrells In Corfu.
Simon Nye, the creator and head writer of The Durrells In Corfu, doesn’t see Gerald Durrell’s books as necessarily sacrosanct, but his fictionalized family is awfully similar to the Durrells’ actual four years in Greece. Now, as the fourth and final season begins, Nye joins us for a conversation exploring the family’s journey from page to screen, with a special preview of what remains for everyone’s favorite Bournemouth Britons in sunny exile overseas.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode One of Season Five of Poldark.
For the last five years, every season of Poldark has adapted at least one of Winston Graham's original novels. For the fifth and final season, however, series creator and head writer Debbie Horsfield was forced to fill in a gap of 11 years between Graham's book, The Angry Tide, and the next novel,' The Stranger from the Sea. It's a challenge she took to, and she explains what she learned in creating this season's plot in a new interview here.
On this very first episode of Poldark, we meet all the key characters who will come to shape the series — Ross, Demelza, Elizabeth, Francis, Verity, Aunt Agatha, George, Prudie. We also meet our Mining Poldark podcast hosts — Robin Ellis, who the original Ross Poldark in the 1970s adaptation of Winston Graham’s novels, and Barrett Brountas, a MASTERPIECE staffer and Poldark superfan. Come along on our journey as we explore the entire scope of this beloved series, episode by episode!
The full first season drops August 26, so be sure and subscribe to Mining Poldark wherever you find your podcasts so you don’t miss an episode!
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Six of Season Four of Grantchester.
When Grantchester star Al Weaver was in drama school, his future Grantchester co-star, Tessa Peake-Jones, was his designated mentor. On screen this season, Weaver and Peake-Jones had a falling out, with their characters, Leonard and Mrs. C, nearly splitting after Leonard's relationship with Daniel came to light. But in a new joint interview, the actors reveal that the hardest part of their fictional fight was not having scenes together.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Five of Season Four of Grantchester.
Detective Geordie Keating’s put-upon wife, Cathy, has faced marital betrayal, a growing family and a murder-obsessed husband with quiet grace, but this season in Grantchester, Cathy has her own career to worry about. Actor Kacey Ainsworth talks about working with Robson Green, the pleasures of a lived-in fictional marriage and how Cathy will deal with her ongoing workplace harassment in the upcoming season four finale.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Four of Season Four of Grantchester.
The heavy burden of replacing Grantchester lead James Norton in the village vicar’s pulpit falls to none other than Tom Brittney, and it’s a role he’s thrilled to take up. With a warm welcome from fans and the on-set Grantchester family alike, Brittney reveals how it felt to motorcycle in to the sleepy village, and previews what secrets await viewers for the rest of this season.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Three of Season Four of Grantchester.
With the recent departure of his friend and castmate, James Norton, from the fields and dells of Grantchester, Robson Green is quick to reassure fans of his series that his character isn’t going anywhere just yet. As the fourth season continues along, Green describes what it meant to say goodbye to Norton, what new changes await his Geordie Keating beyond a new parish priest, and how it felt to team up with Al Weaver’s Leonard Finch on a confusing murder investigation.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episodes One and Two of Season Four of Grantchester.
After a two-year gap, the crime-solving Rev. Sidney Chambers of Grantchester is back on the case — only to leave the village in pursuit of love and social justice abroad. We speak to series creator, head writer and executive producer Daisy Coulam about James Norton's final day on set, Robson Green's tearful goodbye to his on-screen partner and how it felt to write in Tom Brittney's new main character, the Rev. Will Davenport. Coulam also gives a preview of the mysteries still to come on this upcoming fourth season.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Two of Season Six of Endeavour.
In this sixth season of Endeavour, series lead Shaun Evans slips behind the camera for a change in a dramatic second episode. It’s a move that Evans found easy — and one he hopes to have the opportunity to continue elsewhere in his career. He explains how he did it — and how his Endeavour Morse continues to crack complicated cases — in our new interview.
You already know the story…boy meets girl, pride meets prejudice, all in a beautiful wrapper: the dramatic Cornish cliffs and dazzling sea. And as we get ready for the final season of Poldark, we here at MASTERPIECE are starting a new podcast we’re calling Mining Poldark, so you can relive the romance, the adventure and the exploits of our flawed hero all over again.
Hear co-hosts Barrett Brountas and Robin Ellis — the original Ross Poldark from the 1970s adaptation of Winston Graham’s classic novels — preview the new podcast. Full episodes launching soon — subscribe now!
You can subscribe to Mining Poldark wherever you find your podcasts.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Six of Les Miserables.
After six dramatic episodes and several decades of on-screen struggle, Andrew Davies' masterful new adaptation of Victor Hugo's Les Misérables has ended. In a special episode of MASTERPIECE Studio, we hear from Davies and series stars Dominic West and David Oyelowo about how it felt to bring the story of Jean Valjean and Javert to a close.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Six of Season Three of Unforgotten.
Alex Jennings is already a MASTERPIECE regular, with his role as the suave King Leopold in three seasons of Victoria. He's become known for his ability to fully inhabit royal personas, like as the Duke of Windsor in Netflix's The Crown. As Dr. Tim Finch in the third season of Unforgotten, however, Jennings got to create an entirely fictional character. But Dr. Finch wasn’t exactly the easiest of characters to play.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Four of Les Miserables.
Screenwriter Andrew Davies has been a true master of modern television adaptations, bringing such iconic works as Middlemarch and Little Dorit to the MASTERPIECE screen for decades. Now, as he looks ahead to the end of his critically-acclaimed recent adaptation of Victor Hugo’s Les Misérables, Davies also previews his charming new adaptation of Jane Austen’s unfinished final novel, Sanditon, set to appear on MASTERPIECE in 2020.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Three of Les Miserables.
Actor Lily Collins tried her best to not lose herself in the devastating role of Les Misérables' Fantine. Collins explains how she stayed grounded on set, where she found inspiration for her iconic tragic heroine and why her onscreen injury was all-too painfully real.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Two of Les Miserables.
In Victor Hugo's landmark epic, Les Miserables, the Inspector Javert is a hard, cold man with a unflinching pursuit of his own personal justice. But in the critically-acclaimed new MASTERPIECE adaptation of the novel, actor and series executive producer David Oyelowo brings a subtle, sophisticated nuance to his performance, adding layers of context to this memorable villain. He joins the podcast for a preview of the villainy still to come in this this critically acclaimed series.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode One of Les Miserables.
After a career of playing notable villains, actor Dominic West says he’s ready to turn a new leaf. So his role as the tortured thief, Jean Valjean, in the new MASTERPIECE production of Victor Hugo’s classic novel, Les Misérables, is a helpful bridge to be a better man on screen. In an interview, he talks about what it means to play Valjean, how his character seeks personal redemption and what the rest of the series has in store for the repentant former prisoner 24601.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Three of Mrs. Wilson.
The story of Alison Wilson’s relationship with British spy novelist and actual spy, Alexander Wilson, almost seems too wild for reality and too bizarre for the author’s own fiction. But the history, beautifully brought to life by Wilson’s granddaughter, Ruth Wilson, was real. It’s a genre-busting journey where series writer Anna Symon always sought to highlight the power of family joy in this rather dark true tale.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode One of Season Three of Unforgotten.
When writer Chris Lang created the MASTERPIECE Mystery! series Unforgotten, he looked to capture the very ordinary extraordinariness of a modern police force. With a new season on the way, Lang explains what viewers should watch out for as Cassie and Sunny unearth another unidentified body beneath a London roadway construction site.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episodes One and Two of Mrs. Wilson.
When actor Ruth Wilson's grandmother, Alison, died, she left her family a surprisingly candid memoir about her relationship with her secret agent husband, the mystery author Alexander Wilson. The truths that Ruth and her extended family came to learn form the backbone of the new series, Mrs. Wilson. Ruth explores how it felt to play her own grandmother on screen, and what it means to be a tragedienne in film.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Eight of Season Three of Victoria.
Victoria star Jenna Coleman lead a smashing third season of the series, with her royal character growing in roles both maternal and majestic. As the season wraps up, Coleman explores how the young Queen struggles to keep control of her country and her growing family, and reflects on the highlights of a thrilling eight episodes.
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Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Seven of Season Three of Victoria.
The scheming Princess Feodora snuck into Buckingham Palace early in the third season of Victoria, surprising her half-sister, the Queen, and continuing to lurk in the background of the main royal drama. Actor Kate Fleetwood credits her just-so German accent for helping her sink into the role, but she also acknowledges she feels a certain kind of sympathy for the dastardly half-sister with few real friends. She talks Feo, Lady Macbeth and birthday cake in a new podcast episode.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Six of Season Three of Victoria.
Actor Alex Jennings calls himself “a common boy from Essex,” but his career on stage and screen has included at least four different royal roles. Victoria’s scheming King Leopold offers new insight into his role on the series, where he looks for inspiration when playing real-life characters, and why he sees Leopold as both a kingmaker and a puppet master.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Five of Season Three of Victoria.
Laurence Fox is well known to MASTERPIECE viewers after his eight seasons on the beloved series Inspector Lewis, so his appearance on Victoria as the devious UK Foreign Secretary, Lord Palmerston, is a welcome return to the screen. Fox offers hints as to how he and actor Jordan Waller got up to mischief on set, as well as how the cane-twirling Lord Palmerston came to find himself with a cane in the series.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Four of Season Three of Victoria.
The irascible Nancy Skerrett snuck into her job as a dresser at Buckingham Palace under an assumed name, and came to win Queen Victoria’s heart in the past three seasons of the show. And as part of the audience-favorite couple, “Skerrettelli,” actor Nell Hudson has won viewers’ hearts as well. Hudson tells us why her Nancy Skerrett is an inspiration in her own daily life, and what she’s learned from playing so many period-drama
characters in her career.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Three of Season Three of Victoria.
From the very first episode of MASTERPIECE’s Victoria, Lady Emma Portman has been the center of royal intrigue, even if very little of the drama focuses on her. Lady Portman knows who loves who, who spurned who, and what Queen Victoria is really thinking as political favors wax and wane. Actor Anna Wilson-Jones relishes playing the dignified Emma, and has fun dishing the fictional royal gossip. Wilson-Jones charmingly reveals all that she knows on the podcast.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Two of Season Three of Victoria.
Among the many fictional Buckingham Palace servants and staffers on MASTERPIECE's Victoria, Ferdinand Kingsley's Charles Elmé Francatelli is based on an actual royal chef and author. Kingsley's cook is a slight bit younger — and a bit more of a rogue — than the actual Francatelli, but he's convinced his on-screen romantic pursuits are setting the character straight. Kingsley explains here — and Victoria creator, head writer and executive producer Daisy Goodwin returns for another round of historical fact or fiction.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode One of Season Three of Victoria.
Victoria creator, head writer and executive producer Daisy Goodwin already knows the real history of Her Majesty Queen Victoria’s lengthy reign on the throne. But it’s in the intimate perils of the day-to-day where her series finds its true highs and lows. Goodwin joins MASTERPIECE Studio with a special preview of the new third season, and offers some tantalizing hints on the historical drama on the horizon for the young Queen.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Season Four of Poldark.
Debbie Horsfield, the executive producer and sole writer of MASTERPIECE’s Poldark, is ready for the fifth and final season of her series. After the drama and sorrow of the series’ fourth season, she offers some hopeful hints about the story still to come.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Eight of Season Four of Poldark.
Elizabeth Warleggan, formerly Poldark and née Chynoweth, is far from the most beloved character on Poldark. Her shifting affections, wayward alliances and confusing emotional center could drive even the most devoted fan of the series to hold Elizabeth at a distance. But actor Heida Reed has always seen Elizabeth as a fundamentally good person, with the same flaws that any of us may try to hide. Reed offers her defense in a new interview.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Seven of Season Three of The Durrells in Corfu.
The dashingly charming Spiros Halikiopoulos is based on a real-life friend of the actual Durrell family during their time on the island of Corfu. It's a big help for the cast and viewers alike that actor Alexis Georgoulis finds charm to spare in his portrayal of the unofficial mayor of the island. In an exclusive interview, Georgoulis offers a special behind-the-scenes look at his work on The Durrells in Corfu.
For almost 40 years, the MASTERPIECE Mystery! title sequence has offered viewers an ominous glimpse into the dark unknown. It's a vision made real by the masterful work of illustrator and author Edward Gorey, and his fictional affiliation with the criminal world continues in a special mystery-themed exhibit at the Edward Gorey House in Yarmouth Port, MA. In a special bonus Halloween episode of MASTERPIECE Studio, producer Nick Andersen visits the Edward Gorey House to learn more about the man behind Mystery!'s uncommonly deadly masonry. Edward Gorey House curator Gregory Hischak offers his insight.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Five of Season Four of Poldark.
In lemon silks and too-tight breeches, the Reverend Osborne Whitworth is the gaudiest member of Poldark’s core cast. With extravagant tastes and a limited budget, the Reverend turns to darker quarters to fulfill his incessant appetites. Actor Christian Brassington, who put on more than 35 pounds to play the hefty Ossie, used careful voicework to find his place in the character — along with a diet of more than 3,500 calories per day. Hear the true story behind one of Poldark’s most reprehensible characters here.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Four of Season Four of Poldark.
While nobody in Cornwall seems to necessarily enjoy the company of one George Warleggan, even fewer appreciate his nasty uncle, Cary. As the sneering devil on George’s shoulder, Cary pushes George to be his worst self. So it’s a special treat to hear the care and thought that actor Pip Torrens puts into his icy portrayal of Cary Warleggan. He joins us to talk wigs, Cornish accents and how it feels to play an out-and-out bad guy.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Two of Season Four of Poldark.
Josh Whitehouse plays the dashing Lt. Hugh Armitage with an eye on the opportunity for capital ‘R’ Romance. But his character’s loyalties — and divided affections — heighten the stakes for the young actor, and often leave him searching for new motivations. In a new interview, Whitehouse talks Demelza, sand dunes, and more.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode One of Season Four of Poldark.
Debbie Horsfield is the only writer of every episode of MASTERPIECE’s Poldark, so she definitely knows what’s on the horizon in the series’ fourth season. Secrets, lies and parliamentary politics come to Cornwall in a big way this season. Horsfield — who is also one of the series' executive producers — offers a sneak preview of the surprises still to come, and reveals why Aidan Turner was always the only actor she would cast as Ross.
In celebration of the 100th episode of MASTERPIECE Studio, we bring some of our favorite moments from our conversations with MASTERPIECE’s actors and creative talents. From Downton Abbey to Unforgotten and everything in between, we’re delighted to share highlights — including some as-of-yet unheard extras! — from our first 100 episodes. Here’s to the next 100!
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Season Four of Grantchester.
The beloved MASTERPIECE Mystery! series, Grantchester, is set to return to your screens in summer 2019. In the upcoming fourth season of the show, lead actor James Norton — and his character, the Rev. Sidney Chambers — is set to leave the idyllic Cambridgeshire village. Taking his place in the Grantchester parish is actor Tom Brittney, who will play the Rev. Will Davenport, an affable, energetic new arrival on the village green. In an exclusive interview with MASTERPIECE Studio, Grantchester creator Daisy Coulam reveals what to expect in the upcoming fourth season, and what fans have to look forward to with their new parish priest.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Man In An Orange Shirt.
Actor Julian Morris is known for his darker characters — psychopaths, social outcasts and the like, who float around the edges of decent, common society. He says he loves the bombast such roles offer, but the pain and shame of his Adam Berryman in the new MASTERPIECE production, Man In An Orange Shirt, is a different kind of challenge. Morris reveals what drew him to the role, what is was like to work with Vanessa Redgrave, and more.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Little Women.
After her role as Marmee in the MASTERPIECE adaptation of Louisa May Alcott's Little Women, actor Emily Watson has increasingly found herself wondering why she can't parent more like the March family matriarch. Marmee is wise, forgiving and subtle, and allows her four daughters to grow and learn from their mistakes. She revisits the novel, and the role, as well as her Oscar-nominated film debut, in a frank and intimate conversation.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episodes Two and Three of Little Women.
Annes Elwy and Willa Fitzgerald play two of the four beloved March sisters at the heart of the latest MASTERPIECE adaptation of Little Women, and their familial closeness echoes throughout our interview with the young actors. The on-screen sisters describe how they and the rest of the series’ cast bonded behind the scenes, and how their classic characters were granted a modern sense of discovery in writer Heidi Thomas’ elegant version of Louisa May Alcott’s charmed family.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Season Two of Unforgotten.
The Unforgotten detectives solved another cold-case murder. But the conclusion of the series' second season was far from neat. Lead actors Nicola Walker and Sanjeev Bhaskar join the podcast for a look back at a surprising conclusion, and peek ahead at the upcoming third season, currently in production.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode One of Little Women.
For actors Maya Hawke and Jonah Hauer-King — Little Women’s Jo March and Laurie Lawrence, respectively — watching a reel of outtakes from shooting became a reminder of how much they make each other laugh. Hawke and Hauer-King bring that infectious spirit to a joint interview on the MASTERPIECE Studio podcast.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode One of Little Women.
Dame Angela Lansbury has been an acting icon for more than 70 years, bringing character and charm to stage and screen alike. The brand new MASTERPIECE adaptation of Little Women, where she plays the peppery Aunt March, is her first appearance with our program. She takes us through highlights of her prodigious career, reveals what she learned on the Little Women set, and gives a preview of her role in the upcoming film, Mary Poppins Returns.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode One of Little Women.
Writer Heidi Thomas is already plenty busy with the upcoming eighth and ninth seasons of her smash-hit series, Call the Midwife — but she knew she couldn’t say no when Louisa May Alcott came knocking. Adapting the author’s classic novel, Little Women, into a new television series would be a big challenge for Thomas, or any writer. It’s one the longtime fan of Jo, Beth, Amy and Meg March knew she could handle. Thomas explains what she had to cut from the novel and just how icy her Amy’s frozen pond adventure really was.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Season Two of Unforgotten
By his own estimation, Sanjeev Bhaskar started acting relatively late in life. He gives a telling preview of the stunning second season of Unforgotten still to come, and explains how his zany breakout comedy, The Kumars at No. 42 played better in the United States than it did in his native UK.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for The Child in Time.
Benedict Cumberbatch heads the cast of The Child in Time — and his new production company took the lead behind the scenes, as well. It's not Cumberbatch's first experience with author Ian McEwan's work — he appeared in the 2007 feature film, Atonement. Like so many readers, Cumberbatch appreciates the 'cinematic' qualities of McEwan's novels. The busy actor stopped by for a chat about time, trauma and the subtle beauties of the everyday.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Season One of Unforgotten.
Nicola Walker leads the crime-fighting duo on the new MASTERPIECE Mystery! drama, Unforgotten. But the series’ complicated cold-case investigations surprise even her as they unfold week after week. Walker shares stories of Four Weddings and a Funeral, Broadway and why she could never be counted on to keep a criminal secret.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for The Child In Time
In her role as the bereaved mother Julie in the new MASTERPIECE drama, The Child In Time, actor Kelly Macdonald admits a certain distance from the emotional tension of the part. Her acting partner and executive producer, Benedict Cumberbatch, worked hard to make the set a happy place for all involved, Macdonald says. She takes us behind the scenes of The Child in Time, Gosford Park, and so much more.
For six years and six seasons of television, screenwriter Heidi Thomas has explored the challenges of 1950s-era British midwifery. Now, as the seventh season of her PBS drama Call the Midwife heads to air just ahead of her upcoming MASTERPIECE adaptation of Louisa May Alcott’s Little Women, Thomas explores how a charming midwife’s memoirs became an unlikely global success story.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Nine of Season Two of Victoria.
At the end of another season of Victoria, we couldn't help but dip back in to our collection of conversations with the cast and creative talent behind the series to offer some highlights that didn't make it through in our original podcast episodes. Hear from Jenna Coleman, Tom Hughes, Rufus Sewell, David Oakes, Jordan Waller and Daisy Goodwin about life, death and behind-the-scenes scoops from Victoria, season two.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Seven of Season Two of Victoria.
The Christmas finale of Victoria's second season is as joyful to watch as it was to film, the series' lead actors reveal. And show creator Daisy Goodwin hints at the all too true origins of many modern Christmas traditions — Christmas trees, Santa Claus, Christmas cards — that Queen Victoria and Prince Albert helped to popularize.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Six of Season Two of Victoria.
Homosexual romances no doubt existed in Queen Victoria’s court — but perhaps not in the way as depicted in this season’s dramatic storyline involving Lord Alfred Paget and Edward Drummond. The term ‘homosexual’ wasn’t in use in the common dialogue, and actor Jordan Waller thinks that nameless love makes his depiction of Lord Alfred all the more complicated.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Five of Season Two of Victoria.
Series creator Daisy Goodwin moves between historical fact and dramatic fiction when she and her team write each episode of Victoria. For this week’s on-screen quest to Scotland, Goodwin relied heavily on Queen Victoria’s actual diary entries from a 1844 royal visit to Scotland’s Blair Castle. Goodwin —and Victoria stars Jenna Coleman and Tom Hughes — reflect on the magical episode.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Four of Season Two of Victoria.
Ernest, the charming royal German rogue of Victoria, has a reputation for being a kind of happy-go-lucky courtier. But his personal journey this season — from his dying father to his catastrophic medical condition — leaves actor David Oakes wishing somebody else in court would take the time to ask how Ernest is feeling. Oakes explains why he sees Ernest as the Jiminy Cricket to Prince Albert's Pinocchio, and offers his previews of the closing half of this second season of Victoria.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Three of Season Two of Victoria.
Prince Albert is purely logical — which makes Tom Hughes’ search for emotional depths all the more challenging in this second season of Victoria. The actor keeps a close eye on his character's historical experiences, all the while digging for the motivating forces that help push his character through challenging new crises.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Two of Season Two of Victoria.
Rufus Sewell has relished the opportunity to play Lord Melbourne in the last two seasons of Victoria. As he bids farewell to the character, he explains how Lord M’s complicated relationship with Queen Victoria changed during the young Queen’s heady early years on the throne, and why viewers took so strongly to his portrayal of the famed prime minister.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Two of Season Two of Victoria.
Daisy Goodwin may be the creator and head writer of Victoria, but she can’t help but sound like an ardent fan when she talks about the resurgent popularity of her version of Lord Melbourne. “Obviously, I would like Lord M to be in every single episode,” Goodwin said. She explains how and where she looks for historical storylines for her Queen Victoria, and what we all should look forward to in this second season of her series.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode One of Season Two of Victoria.
Queen Victoria is a proud new mother — but so far, she’s anything but pleased. As Prince Albert manages the daily stresses of the royal boxes, Victoria finds herself longing for both marital clarity and professional order. Actor Jenna Coleman warns — this is just the rocky beginning of a particularly dramatic new season of Victoria. Coleman, and Victoria creator Daisy Goodwin, explore the season still to come.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Six of Season Two of The Durrells in Corfu.
Louisa Durrell let another love interest pass her by at the end of The Durrells In Corfu’s season two. Along the way, however, she might have been reminded where her true loyalty lies: with her family. Actor Keely Hawes says “the Durrells are very good at change,” and she looks ahead to the upcoming third season in a special bonus episode of the podcast.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Nine of Season Three of Poldark
Demelza Poldark ended her third season of Poldark with a stunning act of defiance. Actor Eleanor Tomlinson doesn’t feel like she could have made the same choices, but she has been pleasantly surprised by the way fans have supported her character’s heartbreaking decision. “If Ross is going to go and do what he wants to do, why shouldn’t she go and have some fun?,” she tells us.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Five of Season Two of The Durrells in Corfu.
Actor Daniel Lapaine has made a career playing rakishly charming characters — He’s ‘a Smiling Devil,’ as one
director told him. Lapaine’s role as Hugh on this season of The Durrells in Corfu is more of the same, but he explains how the allure of the Durrell family is all too real for this Australian actor. Will Louisa head back to England with Hugh? Lapaine isn’t saying.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Six of Season Three of Poldark
Caroline Blakiston’s Aunt Agatha Poldark has been a secret triumph throughout these three seasons of Poldark, lurking by the Trenwith fire while reading her tarot cards and peering into the Cornish future. After a particularly dramatic episode, Blakiston joins us to talk costumes, character development and how Harrison Ford helped calm her nerves in her famous Star Wars performance.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Five of Season Three of Poldark
After just missing her chance at true romantic happiness this week, the young Morwenna Chenoweth seems to be trapped in a loveless, lifeless marriage. But Ellise Chappell, the young Poldark actor who plays Morwenna, isn’t worried. “We’ve got to keep hoping,” for the troubled Morwenna, she tells us — and offers stories of frogs, friendships and more from the Poldark set.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode One of Season Two of The Durrells in Corfu.
As a child, Keeley Hawes adored reading about the Durrell family’s fantastic Greek adventures on the island of Corfu. Years later, she finds herself as the fictional head of the Durrell clan, playing the role of matriarch Louisa Durrell in the ongoing series, The Durrells in Corfu. In conversation with MASTERPIECE Studio, Keeley anticipates the furry and funny upcoming season of the show.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episodes One and Two of Season Three of Poldark.
Poldark’s Caroline Penvenen, the beautiful heiress with a generous heart, has secrets in store in the upcoming third season of the series. Actor Gabriella Wilde offers hints of the stories yet to come for her character, and reveals what it was like to film with her newborn child on set — as well as which of the dogs playing Horace the Pug she prefers..
With the upcoming 2018 adaptation of Little Women on MASTERPIECE rapidly approaching, we wanted to look back 149 years to the original 1868 publication of Louisa May Alcott’s classic novel of the same name. More specifically, we wanted to hear from our listeners and viewers why that novel is an important part of their lives. On International Podcast Day 2017, you told us.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode One of Season Four of Endeavour.
A string of mysterious and seemingly unconnected Oxford murders greets Detective Constable Endeavour Morse in a brand new season of Endeavour. Lead series writer Russell Lewis wakes up every day wondering, “Who am I going to kill today?’ — and he tells us what, and who, to watch for in the upcoming fourth season.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Seven of Season Three of Grantchester.
Another season of Grantchester is done and dusted, and lead writer Daisy Coulam has a few thoughts about the emotional journey she took us all on these past seven weeks. She talks love, duty, personal faith and her favorite scenes of the season that was.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Six of Season Three of Grantchester.
Iconic British actor Tessa Peake-Jones describes herself as a rather happy woman, but her Mrs. Maguire on Grantchester is anything but. She explains how she found her character, how she “listen acts” and what her former acting mentee, Al Weaver is really like on set.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Five of Season Three of Grantchester.
Actor Al Weaver, who plays church curate Leonard Finch in Grantchester, began his time on the series with a rather unfortunate mustache. He tells us about his character’s journey from mustache to near-marriage and beyond, and gives some behind-the-scenes flavor of his funny, friendly relationship with his co-stars.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Six of Prime Suspect: Tennison.
The Prime Suspect: Tennison season is over, but Jane Tennison’s journey to Detective Chief Inspector is just beginning. Actor Stefanie Martini reflects on the explosive season finale, the young Jane’s first big case, and the steps that still remain in the WPC’s fledgling career in the Metropolitan Police.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Three of Prime Suspect: Tennison.
Actor Sam Reid plays the grizzled Detective Inspector Len Bradfield, an early mentor for a young Jane Tennison in the new prequel series, Prime Suspect: Tennison. Bradfield is a role all its own — but Reid told us he couldn’t help but sneak a few of the original Jane Tennison’s quirks into his new character as a roadmap for where the future Prime Suspect legend would end up .
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode One of Prime Suspect: Tennison.
The original Prime Suspect brought powerhouse Detective Chief Inspector Jane Tennison to our screens for seven seasons. But Tennison didn’t start at the top. Actor Stefanie Martini -- who plays a younger version of the iconic character in the new prequel series, Prime Suspect: Tennison -- reveals how she found her own unique angle on Tennison.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode One of the Third Season of Grantchester.
The comic and dramatic collide in full force in the picture book village of Grantchester, perhaps in this upcoming third season more than ever. Most of that mood comes from lead writer Daisy Coulam, who joins MASTERPIECE Studio to unpack her writing method, the show’s distinctive moral messaging and the secrets of the season yet to come.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Dark Angel.
Fans of “Downton Abbey’s” Anna Bates were likely spooked by Joanne Froggatt’s character in “Dark Angel”: the manipulative real-life serial killer Mary Ann Cotton. In this episode, MASTERPIECE Studio dissects Mary Ann’s motives, and pulls back the curtain on Joanne Froggatt’s darkest role to date.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for King Charles III.
In 2012, playwright Mike Bartlett had a revolutionary idea: a Shakespearean drama about a king who had not yet ruled, King Charles III. But the road from first draft to Tony nomination was anything but easy. In this episode, Mike Bartlett joins host Jace Lacob to go behind-the-scenes of his controversial work.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for King Charles III.
Mike Bartlett’s Tony-nominated play “King Charles III” imagines the contentious ascension of Prince Charles to the throne. The new monarch’s refusal to play by the rules turns nearly everyone against him—from the members of Parliament to his daughter-in-law, Kate. In the wake of the television adaption, the late actor Tim Pigott-Smith (Charles) and Charlotte Riley (Kate) explore playing the real-life royals, the ghost of Princess Diana, and “rebranding” the British monarchy.
Warning: This show contains "To Walk Invisible: The Brontë Sisters" spoilers.
Emily Brontë—of “Wuthering Heights” and Brontë family fame—looms large over English literature and high school lectures alike, yet so little about her is actually known. How did actor Chloe Pirrie bring this almost mythological writer to life? We spoke with Chloe about getting inside the mind of Emily Brontë and all of the wacky things that she discovered along the way.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Eight of the First Season of Victoria.
In the aftermath of a season finale that tested the relationship between Queen Victoria and Prince Albert, we’re talking to “Victoria” stars Jenna Coleman and Tom Hughes about what it is like to play a royal couple whose love story is – quite literally – one for the history books.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Six of the First Season of Victoria.
What does it take to write a television series? In Daisy Goodwin’s case, it took a fight, 30 years of research experience, and a lot of heart. This is the story of how Daisy Goodwin came to write "Victoria," and how she brought 19th-century characters to life on screen.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Four of the First Season of Victoria.
Although many people have been rooting for Lord Melbourne and Victoria to end up together, history decided a different fate for the pair. Rufus Sewell, the actor who plays Lord M, joins us to reveal his own “mixed feelings” about being replaced by actor Tom Hughes and his character, Prince Albert, and weighs in on audiences’ reactions to Lord Melbourne.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episodes One and Two of the First Season of Victoria.
Though MASTERPIECE's new period drama, "Victoria," is based on actual, 19th century history, it can be hard to distinguish fact from fiction. Did Victoria and Lord Melbourne actually have a "special relationship"? And what was Queen Victoria's coronation really like? Actor Jenna Coleman and "Victoria" writer Daisy Goodwin join us to answer these questions surrounding the series premiere and more.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Two of the Fourth Season of Sherlock.
John Watson and Sherlock Holmes have been through some rough patches before, but never one quite like this. In the wake of an episode that tests both their relationship, and their sanity, Martin Freeman joins us to look back at John and Sherlock’s unlikely friendship, and teases their uncertain future.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode One of the Fourth Season of Sherlock.
“Sherlock’s” Amanda Abbington weighs in on the premiere, and on playing the divisive Mary Watson.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode One of the Fourth Season of Sherlock.
"Sherlock’s" Molly Hooper has gone from being somewhat of a joke to a fan favorite. She has gotten to slap and kiss Sherlock Holmes; we’ve even seen her portrayed as a mustachioed, Victorian doctor in “The Abominable Bride.” So, how will Molly Hooper surprise us next? Actor Louise Brealey discusses her quirky character and teases Season 4 just in time for the January 1st "Sherlock" premiere.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Ten of the Second Season of Poldark.
Even though actor Aidan Turner understands Ross Poldark's motivations more than most, he can admit that Ross was "a mess" this season. In this episode, Aidan Turner joins us to reflect on Ross's missteps, the fiery finale, and why he still believes that Ross and Demelza are "soulmates."
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Nine of the Second Season of Poldark.
Actor Heida Reed is nothing like the character she plays on MASTERPIECE. In fact, she describes herself as, "actually the opposite;" she's impulsive and she "doesn't have a filter." So what has it been like for her to play the buttoned-up (and hate-able) Elizabeth Poldark? We turn to Heida to find out.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Eight of the Second Season of Poldark.
Eleanor Tomlinson -- who plays Demelza Poldark -- comments on recent events as shocking as a slap in the face.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Seven of the Second Season of Poldark.
Dr. Dwight Enys knows how to extract fish bones from throats, cure scurvy, and fix locked knees, but for all of his knowledge about the human body, he really struggles when it comes to matters of the heart. Actor Luke Norris joins us in the aftermath of the latest love drama to comment on whether or not things will ever come around for the good doctor.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Five of the Second Season of Poldark.
Francis Poldark might be the unluckiest character to appear on MASTERPIECE since Lady Edith Crawley, but whereas Downton's Lady Edith got a happy ending, Francis Poldark did not.
In this episode, actor Kyle Soller talks about Francis's unhappy ending and looks back on some of his favorite scenes from the past two seasons.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Three of the Second Season of Poldark.
With all of George Warleggan's antics this season and last, it's hard to see him as anything other than Cornwall's resident villain...or is it? In this episode, actor Jack Farthing gives us a different take on the "Poldark" character.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode One and Two of the Second Season of Poldark.
In the wake of "Poldark's" tense, Season 2 premiere, Eleanor Tomlinson sits down with us to talk about playing the fiery Demelza Poldark and Demelza and Ross's future together: the good, the bad, and the baby.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode One of the Second Season of Poldark.
Season 2 of "Poldark" is just around the corner! So what's in store for Ross, Demelza, and the rest of the Cornwall crew? On this episode, Aidan Turner looks back on Season 1 -- including Ross's shirtless scything scene -- and shares a few Season 2 secrets with us to get us ready to watch the premiere.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Churchill’s Secret.
Actors Sir Michael Gambon and Romola Garai -- who play Winston Churchill and Millie Appleyard in the film "Churchill's Secret" -- have a relationship as lighthearted on-screen as they do off.
Here, the two come together in this exclusive interview to talk about the film, Albus Dumbledore, and the necessity of secret keeping. Also hear from the film's director, Charles Sturridge, on bringing this remarkable and true story to life.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Three of the Ninth Season of Inspector Lewis.
Though this is not the first time that we've said "goodbye" to Inspector Lewis, actor Kevin Whately insists that, this time, the beloved character is leaving the screen for good.
But before we say our final farewells, Kevin Whately joins us to look back on his incredible 30 year career as Robbie Lewis -- the once "second banana" turned leading detective and star.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode One of the Ninth Season of Inspector Lewis.
Clare Holman's 20-year run as pathologist Dr. Laura Hobson is coming to a close. But before it does, Clare joins us to reminisce about her time on "Morse" and "Inspector Lewis" and to tease the explosive series finale.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Four of the Third Season of Endeavour.
Roger Allam returns to the podcast to take us behind the scenes of the wild "Endeavour" season finale -- from the bullet-spitting scene to Thursday and Matthew's standoff.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Four of the Third Season of Endeavour.
Although young D.C. Morse is not the first version of the iconic detective to grace the screen, in the aftermath of one of the most intense episodes of "Endeavour" to date, it's clear that Shaun Evans' take on the famous character is a memorable one all the same.
Five years after agreeing to play the part of the young Endeavour Morse, Shaun Evans reveals what it was that attracted him to the role, explains how "Endeavour" is like "Sex and the City," and answers our most burning questions about the third season finale.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Three of the Third Season of Endeavour.
These days, Anton Lesser is most recognized for playing two very different characters: "Endeavour's" Chief Superintendent Bright and "Game of Thrones's" Qyburn. Now, in the aftermath of his standout performance in "Endeavour's" "Prey," the seasoned British actor talks with us about his roles both past and present, heroic and murderous.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Two of the Third Season of Endeavour.
DC Morse and the Oxford City Police are back to business as they investigate a whole new spate of crimes: poisonings, kidnappings, and explosions. But beyond being chock-full of crime-drama goodness, this season's second episode also introduces us to a new character and the show's first female police officer, WPC Shirley Trewlove.
WPC Trewlove joins the "Endeavour" cast just as actor Dakota Blue Richards joins us here to talk about her character's "morbid fascination" with Oxford's dark side, and to tease her future on the Cowley team.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode One of the Third Season of Endeavour.
After being shot at the end of "Endeavour," Season 2, Inspector Fred Thursday is back on the beat with a hole in his lung and a lot on his plate. He has to deal with a fairground murder and a suspected drug overdose, but his biggest challenge: convincing Morse to rejoin the force.
In this episode, we talk to Roger Allam about the third season premiere, playing Inspector Fred Thursday, and his other acting endeavors.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode One of the Third Season of Endeavour.
Back in 1987, actor John Thaw brought the endearingly cantankerous Inspector Morse to life on screen for the first time. Now, nearly 30 years later, John Thaw's daughter helps to keep that legacy alive.
This is the story of how Abigail Thaw came to play Dorothea Frazil in the Inspector Morse prequel, Endeavour, just in time for Endeavour's third season premiere.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Three of the Fourth Season of Wallander.
From dealing with big cats and non-stop rain to guiding Kenneth Branagh's last performance as Kurt Wallander, Benjamin Caron describes all of the challenges that came with directing "Wallander's" final season.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Three of the Fourth Season of Wallander.
The series finale of "Wallander" had a lot of heart; it gave us a heartbreaking diagnosis, a heart-pounding case, and to top it off, a heart-filled performance from the great Sir Kenneth Branagh.
Now, appearing for one last time on the podcast, Kenneth Branagh discusses the most memorable moments from the final episode -- including the questionably happy ending -- and his last days as the brooding detective.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Ten of the Fourth Season of Mr. Selfridge.
"Mr. Selfridge" is going out in style. From spectacle to stunts, this season has it all. But how will the party end for the larger-than-life retail magnate?
Actor Jeremy Piven looks back on his four-year journey as Mr. Selfridge and to get us ready to watch the series finale.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Two of the Fourth Season of Wallander.
In the second episode of the final season, we get to see a different side of Wallander...one that's just as involved with his family as he is with his job. But just when it looks like Wallander may have finally found happiness, new health problems threaten to bring everything crashing down.
In his second appearance on the podcast, Kenneth Branagh provides his own take on Wallander's seeming endless struggle with relationships, health and happiness.
Despite originating from what is widely considered to be the happiest -- and most beautiful -- region in the world, Nordic Noir has come to be known for its focus on heinous crimes and the deeply flawed people who investigate them.
What's behind the darkness and violence seen in Wallander and other Nordic Noir crime drama? And what makes these shows so entertaining to watch? Professor Andrew Nestingen, expert in all things Nordic Noir, investigates.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode One of the Fourth Season of Wallander.
MASTERPIECE Studio will follow the final season of "Wallander" the way Kurt Wallander follows crime...obsessively. From now until the finale, Kenneth Branagh -- who plays the brooding Swedish detective -- will join us on the podcast every week following the show.
Here, in the aftermath of the Season 4 premiere, the North Irish actor reveals what it was like to play a Swede in South Africa, and remembers the experiences he had eight years ago that made playing Kurt Wallander possible.
Back in 2008, Australian native Emily Barker and her band the Red Clay Halo recorded their song, "Nostalgia," in relative anonymity. But when the crime drama Wallander premiered, accompanied by the song, "Nostalgia" became an instant hit. As told by Emily Barker herself, this is the story of "Nostalgia" from its chilly inception to its eventual fame.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Six of the Second Season of Grantchester.
From punches to pranks, "Grantchester's" James Norton (Sidney) and Robson Green (Geordie) had a wild time together filming Season 2.
Now in the wake of "Grantchester's" season finale, the dynamic duo returns to recap this season's most dramatic moments and reveal their most entertaining, behind-the-scenes stories.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Five of the Second Season of Grantchester.
In the aftermath of Gary's hanging and Sidney and Geordie's big fight, the once and (hopefully) future dream team -- James Norton (Sidney) and Robson Green (Geordie) -- get together on the podcast to remember the past as it truly was.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Four of the Second Season of Grantchester.
Amanda -- a wealthy debutante -- and Sidney -- an Anglican vicar -- have managed to keep their relationship alive despite social conventions of the ‘50s. But now, it seems like a baby -- if not their significant others -- may actually keep "Grantchester's" star-crossed lovers apart.
In this episode, we turn to actor Morven Christie, who plays Amanda, to get the inside scoop on the future of Amanda and Sidney’s relationship, what it's like to be a woman in the entertainment industry, and why Amanda's story is one that needs to be told.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Two of the Second Season of Grantchester.
Grantchester is a real town in the English countryside, but the crime-solving adventures of Sidney and Geordie exist only in the mind of author James Runcie whose book series, "The Grantchester Mysteries," serves as the inspiration for the Masterpiece program.
In this episode, Runcie talks about meeting James Norton, tells us how Amanda Kendall came to be, and reveals secrets on the making of the show.
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode One of the Second Season of Grantchester.
Handsome vicar Sidney Chambers and gruff detective Geordie Keating are back on the beat, solving mysteries in the idyllic town of Grantchester all while battling demons of their own.
We'll sit down with Sidney and Geordie -- James Norton and Robson Green -- for an in-depth look at what's in store for "Grantchester’s" second season.
Have you ever been haunted? Sherlock's Mark Gatiss has—and he shares a story in the supernatural vein of the upcoming Sherlock special, "The Abominable Bride," coming to Masterpiece on PBS New Year's Day, 2016.
Masterpiece Studio is made possible by Audible. Sponsors for Masterpiece on PBS as Viking River Cruises, Audible and The Masterpiece Trust.
Sherlock co-creator, writer and actor Mark Gatiss—who plays the conniving Mycroft Holmes—previews the upcoming special, “The Abominable Bride,” (premiering 1/1/15 on PBS) and takes you behind the scenes of the hit show. From hatching the idea for the series on a train ride, to casting Benedict Cumberbatch, Gatiss reflects on bringing Sherlock to life in the 21st century.
Masterpiece Studio is made possible by Audible. Sponsors for Masterpiece on PBS as Viking River Cruises, Audible and The Masterpiece Trust.