- Had you seen "Grantchester" before you auditioned?
- No, I don't really like shows
about vicars and detectives.
(Robson laughs) (soft orchestral music)
- James Runcie, the creator of the book,
said "Grantchester, quintessentially English,
"beautiful, idyllic, peaceful, and tranquil,
"perfect for picnics and murder."
(soft jazz music)
♪ Boo, ba-doom, ba-doom, ba-doo ♪
- It seems that, after the war,
after the rationing has stopped,
that Britain has never had it so good.
We are all Adam and Eve,
and the world is our garden.
♪ Doo be doo bow ♪
- Everyone's in this overwhelming state of wellbeing.
Everybody appears to be happy.
Daniel and Leonard, Mrs. C.,
Geordie and Cathy, everything's working.
It's all good.
- Life seems to be settled at the vicarage again,
and Will has now settled in very nicely, the new vicar,
and Leonard is behaving well,
so it looks like everything's going to go very smoothly.
- [Tom] But underneath that veneer of loveliness
is this darkness bubbling away.
- She'll be picking sick
out of that blonde hair come midnight.
Mark my words, Larry.
No matter how good things are,
he always knows something bad is around the corner
because, in his world, that's how life is.
- The brighter the light, the darker the shadows.
As beautiful as it seems to be on the surface,
how dark can it get underneath?
And one of the things we've always enjoyed doing is
challenging ourselves and the audience
into where we can take the show.
- It's a murder show, so, you know,
murder's always a dark subject,
but I think there's some story lines in this one
that aren't often discussed or looked into.
- In this series, we're looking at things
that we're talking about now that were relevant then.
We're talking about mental health issues.
What happened in the '50s?
Was there any help?
(woman screams)
- [Richard] So the crimes in "Grantchester" this year
take our lead characters into a number of different worlds.
- Excuse me.
- [Richard] We have a story set
in an all-girls college at Cambridge.
There is a hit and run on the Grantchester high street.
There is a murder at the cinema in Cambridge.
We have a body found on the Fens.
- Introducing, in the red corner.
- [Richard] There is a accident at a boxing match,
and there is a convent that isn't quite a convent,
and all of these worlds give us an opportunity
to peel back the layers on what was really happening
in Cambridge in 1957.
- Our path through life would be pretty lonely
without anyone to share it with.
This series, our friendship is well and truly blossoming,
and the thing with Will is
that he has a hole missing in his life,
and Geordie becomes that father figure, and a best friend.
- When we first saw Tom and Robson together,
we all breathed a sigh of relief, really,
because that chemistry was there.
- You get a look at the driver?
- No.
- Make of car?
- Maybe.
- Number plate?
- Yes, and it will come back to me any minute.
- [Daisy] I mean, Will and Geordie,
they sort of write themselves now.
I just have to start typing a scene,
and they'll be bantering away for ages.
There's a warmth and a humor to them.
They're not just solving a crime.
They're friends as well.
- [Robson] Like anything, you've got to really like
the person behind the lens,
and enjoy their company for it to resonate
in front of the lens,
and I really genuinely like Tom.
(Tom and Robson sing)
- [Tom] Yeah.
- And then you get the other one on top of that.
- [Man] And speed.
- Three, three, three, take one.
♪ I can't seem to fix ♪
- Oh, mate, let's record it one day.
- [Robson] We should.
- [Director] And action.
- Retracing your steps.
It's American mumbo jumbo.
Lot to answer for, those Americans.
- Can you finish this conversation in your head?
- [Robson] "Grantchester" is an ensemble piece.
It's full of a gallery of characters
who have their own journeys,
but it is the relationships
that make the show work.
- [Al] With Leonard, he sort of adds a lot of comedy.
- Leonard.
- Nothing.
- Leonard and Mrs. C., we call them the double act.
They irritate each other in the vicarage.
- Don't let me keep you.
- They have fun together.
She knows about him, but kinda puts it,
you know, in a sort of dark cupboard.
- I think we're allowed a stiff handshake.
- [Al] He's met someone in Daniel
who, they have a partnership, and a friendship,
and they've been on a holiday together,
Morocco, where two men are allowed
to hold hands, and stay in the same place.
- How was Bognar?
You had the sun then?
- He's come back with a big smile on his face.
It was very temperate.
- It's mine.
- Geordie has been noticing
that, since Cathy's been working,
not much is getting done in the house.
- It's the cavalry.
- The arrival of her mother,
you don't really know which way it's gonna go.
Geordie's never been very,
shall I say, complimentary about Cathy's mother.
Oh, can't face the world without my face.
(laughs)
- So this series, Will still has his vow of celibacy.
Hi.
- He's better looking than the rest of your boys.
- [Tom] There is a new character in Ellie,
who is a journalist.
- You know, like, at school,
when you like someone, and you kinda tease them?
That's how it starts for those two.
- If spreading malicious gossip's how you enjoy yourself,
you might want to have another look at your life.
- Well, at least I make my own stuff up for a living,
rather than spouting rubbish from some old book.
And I think she poses a bit of a challenge for Will
because I don't think he's had somebody
quite as confident and self-assured as she is.
- [Tom] He doesn't morally agree with her techniques
of how she gets information,
but he also really likes her.
- One of the fun things
about working on "Grantchester" is it offers a range
of tones to work with.
You got humor, and heart, and warmth,
and you also got darkness, and mystery,
and crime, and human drama all in one package,
and that's exciting to work on,
and I hope it's exciting to watch as well.
- There's many things that attract people to "Grantchester."
it's very charming, it's quintessentially English,
but the beauty of it is,
there's always something uncomfortable going on,
and comedy always comes at a tragedy.
So much for Eden then.
It's interesting, isn't it?
Why this show is so popular not only here,
and around the world,
and why the kinda likeability transcends everywhere.
- Look, I've gotta go and do a sermon.
- Go on.
- All right, see you in a bit.
- Love you.
- Bye.
- He's too good-looking, I don't like him.
(laughs)