Grantchester in the Media: All the News You Can't Get from Mrs. Maguire

[M. Darcy]

They had a readthrough today for season 2 and filming is about to commence.  It is going to be on ITV in 2016.  Here's a press release -  http://www.itv.com/presscentre/press-releases/filming-commence-second-series-grantchester

[dargosmydaddy]

On set photos from the new season... I can't wait!

 

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-3227975/Grantchester-stars-James-Norton-Robson-Green-Tessa-Peake-Jones-share-giggle-Cambridge-set.html

[zxy556575]

Nice!

 

I watched a show recently where James Norton played a rapist. It took me a while to even figure out how I knew him since that sullen and grisly character was so far from the kind and attractive do-gooder we see on this show.

Edited September 10, 2015 by lordonia

[AllAboutMBTV]

FIlming of season/series 2 has begun, and the producers really have no shame. Greetings from the Shallow End of the Pool -- both literally and figuratively! (Be sure to page down a couple of screens to the Sept. 10 entry if you're extra-shallow. Like me, I guess... )

[JudyObscure]

Oh how nice, AllAboutMBTV!  I did page all the way down and got Robson Green as a bonus!  Robson and Francesca Annis  were sexy and delightful in one of my favorite BBC>PBS numbers, Reckless!  It's sad to see them both (Francesca in "Home Fires") playing old folks now.

[Cranston]

Geordie is....an old folk!

[M. Darcy]

I read on twitter last night that we will be seeing the new episodes this year.  Hopefully we will find out an actual date soon.

 

And, James Norton is in the new BBC production of War and Peace which started showing in England last night. He's playing Prince Andrei. 

[zxy556575]

Thanks, M. Darcy.

 

I remember liking the show a lot when it originally aired, but when so much time goes by between seasons it's hard for me to pick up the thread again enough to care. I shouldn't have to rewatch all the previous episodes of a series in order to enjoy it. Harumph.

 

It's also possible my brain is stuck in binge mode nowadays and I'm too impatient to put in the time anymore.

[AllAboutMBTV]

Dreamy McVicarson's "War and Peace" has its U.S. premiere on Jan. 18 on Lifetime (and A&E as well, I believe). Going by the PR photos he wears the opulent costumes well. More here.

[M. Darcy]

Interesting  - I was sure MT would show it.  I bet that means Lifetime is going to also be showing And Then There Were None - I thought it was just a mistake on the ebook cover.  Not a good thing for MT if they are not showing two of the big BBC productions. 

 

 At least we only have to wait a few weeks and not the normal months to see Dreamy McVicarson again .  Heh, though there goes my plan to reread War and Peace before MT showed it.  Yeah....that probably wasn't going to really happen :-)  

[AllAboutMBTV]

 

Not a good thing for MT if they are not showing two of the big BBC productions.

I should maybe post this in the more general Masterpiece forum, Alistair Cooke's Library, but I'll carry on here for the moment.

 

I'm also wondering if Masterpiece is going to show Life In Squares (about the Bloomsbury Group) and/or Lady Chatterley's Lover (both with James Norton, so: Topic!). I remember back in the day (the late 70s), PBS would announce the titles for the entire season of Masterpiece in the fall, and you could plan your winter reading accordingly (or not). But then, as I've long said, "I think Masterpiece has run out of masterpieces." I mean, I like "Last Tango in Halifax" and all,  but it's hardly a masterpiece. See also: "Home Fires." And I really tried with "Indian Summers" but I couldn't; it just made me want to watch "The Jewel in the Crown" again some more. Two big thumbs up for "Wolf Hall," though.

[alias1]

I read on twitter last night that we will be seeing the new episodes this year.  Hopefully we will find out an actual date soon.

 

I'm really looking forward to the next season of Grantchester.  Love the show.  But I read the first three books in the series and they are really different from the tv show.  I wonder if the show will continue to go a separate path or if it will somehow come back to the plot in the books.

[M. Darcy]

The date has been narrowed down some - its going to be on in the Spring.  Which makes sense - that's probably around the time Downton will end.

 

FYI, if anyone hasn't read the first book yet and has a Nook or the Nook app, the ebook is only $2.99 at Barnes and Nobles.

[M. Darcy]

News! The new season starts March 27.

[Gin and Tonic]

Norton and Green did a ridiculously charming cell phone video live chat. Very mild spoilers.

 

They're so adorable.

[HoodlumSheep]

^ adorable!!!! I'm kind of bummed about James' response to whether "the german lady" (her name is Hildegard!) is coming back. He kind of avoided in way that makes me think she won't be back (at least for now).

:( @ Amanda being in the picture still. I knew she still would be, but I don't like her character and I don't like her and Sidney together.

Edited January 27, 2016 by HoodlumSheep

[magdalene]

I am really bummed about the German lady too.  I guess they are not following the books.

[Gin and Tonic]

My only regret with Hildegard is that Norton didn't definitively state that she wouldn't be back. I found her relationship with Sidney shallowly written and generally found the character soporific. She didn't feel like a real character to me. She existed to be a foil to Amanda and show qualities better suited to a vicar's wife (patient, soothes the savage breast of Mrs. M., handles Mr. Brandt and his wisterias). That said, she certainly didn't deserve to be on the receiving end of Sidney's boorish behavior, so I hope if she comes back eventually, Sidney's actions aren't swept under the rug.

 

I guess I hold the UO opinion of liking Amanda.

Table for two! I actually love Amanda. I don't think she and Sidney would be good as a married couple because dear god, if Hildegard has the perfect temperament to be a vicar's wife, Amanda quite possibly has the worst temperament for it. But I love her friendship with Sidney and their sense of playfulness. I also think she gets unfairly castigated for a lot of things. I don't expect her to step outside her social constraints anymore than I expect Sidney to.

 

I don't like Amanda because she's trying to have it both ways with Sidney: She knows he has feelings for her yet she keeps him at arm's length because she's engaged to someone else.

I couldn't disagree more! :) To me the trouble seem the opposite: She's getting married, but still wants him involved as a close friend in ways that are painful and borderline inappropriate (the jazz club). It probably would've been less painful for Sidney if she did keep him at arm's length! Then he wouldn't have been invited to the engagement dinner, for example.

 

It would be better for the both of them in the long run if she cut ties more thoroughly, but I don't really blame her. She couldn't make the first move for obvious reasons like social class and being a woman in the 1950s, but she doesn't want to lose her friendship with Sidney. Even if they will never be a love match. And it's not like Sidney is much better. He was essentially paralyzed for his entire relationship with Amanda and didn't feel like he could make the first move either. Hell,  he shows up drunk at her house in the last episode, and still can't articulate what he wants when Amanda is imploring him to.

 

My hope for season 2 is that they find a new status quo that allows them to still be friends and have moved on from the unrequited love.

 

And she asks him to perform the ceremony.

She was desperately uncomfortable throughout that entire scene and was tripping over herself trying to give Sidney the opportunity to refuse. The person who was insisting Sidney perform the ceremony was Guy. In fact, Guy even says Amanda didn't want to ask!
 

I hope they don't drop Sidney's ptsd either. I feel like the finale had this strange "we're kind of wrapping up this storyline" feeling to it

I hope they don't either. It's not the kind of thing that goes away after a tearful bedside conversation. We still haven't learned how he got injured, so it's possible we'll see more of his war background. And he earned a medal (the Military Cross, I assume), but I it was unclear to me if that was for the incident we saw in the first season. Maybe that will come into play.

 

The trailer for season 2 has arrived.

Edited February 3, 2016 by Gin and Tonic

[HoodlumSheep]

Ooh, looks good! Can't wait! Norton and Green work so well together!

[dargosmydaddy]

 

The trailer for season 2 has arrived.

Not only did that make me incredibly happy (I watched it three times...), but I also find the combination of Grantchester and an Alt-J song to be both unexpected and hilarious...

[M. Darcy]

Article from PBS - 5 things to know about Grantchester's leading men http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/masterpiece/programs/features/spotlight/grantchester-s2-5-things-know-about-leading-men/

[HoodlumSheep]

https://twitter.com/masterpiecepbs/status/717820836263104512

Grantchester has been renewed for a Season 3!

[photo fox]

Traditional and social media stuffs.

[HoodlumSheep]

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/masterpiece/programs/features/spotlight/grantchester-s2-bingo/

I'd thought I'd share this after I saw it on twitter! You could probably get an easy Bingo based on those bingo squares.

Edited April 16, 2016 by HoodlumSheep

[yeswedo]

In case this hasn't already been posted, the last few episodes of the Masterpiece Studio podcast have been about Grantchester. The most recent episode is an interview with James Norton and Robson Greene. It was recorded before season 3 was confirmed so there's some speculation about what might happen in season 3 but nothing that is based on filming.

[dargosmydaddy]

Apparently filming has just finished for series 3... Potentially spoilery link of pictures:

Spoiler

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-3968758/James-Norton-screen-love-Morven-Christie-inch-doting-parents-film-final-scenes-Grantchester-series-three.html

At the very least, Amanda hasn't died in childbirth...

Also, there is a Christmas special... Here's hoping that PBS will air it on Christmas (or thereabouts) like it does with the Call the Midwife special...

[photo fox]

On 11/27/2016 at 5:55 PM, dargosmydaddy said:

Spoiler

At the very least, Amanda hasn't died in childbirth...

 

 

Well, that's unfortunate.

[MissLucas]

I don't understand how Runcie lets them get away with that. I'd be livid. But he's got enough experience in the business that I have to assume he's okay with it.

[dubbel zout]

James Norton was in the "Nosedive" episode of the Black Mirror anthology series. He does a credible American accent.

[magdalene]

On 11/28/2016 at 11:00 PM, photo fox said:

Well, that's unfortunate.

You can say that again.  This show has really gotten derailed by the production's bizarre obsession with that particular character

 

On 11/29/2016 at 1:34 AM, MissLucas said:

I don't understand how Runcie lets them get away with that. I'd be livid. But he's got enough experience in the business that I have to assume he's okay with it

.Unless he is a producer on the show I doubt there is anything he could do about it.

Boy, this sucks.  Well, I stopped watching last season , so I'll just continue not watching I guess.

[MissLucas]

Yeah, Runcie's not a producer. I was referring to signing off the rights to tv. He's been a tv producer himself and knows the lay of the land. He has also enough clout as a writer to have added certain clauses giving him a voice when it comes to the writing. So I have to assume he's okay with what is going on.

[dargosmydaddy]

Some spoilers for the Christmas special, as well as some cute pictures of James Norton and Robson Green fooling around in the fake snow.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-3996152/Vicar-Sidney-Chambers-hits-bottle-Grantchester-Christmas-special.html

As far as I can tell, looks like PBS isn't airing the Christmas special any time soon :(

[dargosmydaddy]

I still can't find any specific information on when series 3 is airing in either the US or the UK... Maybe the plan is to wait so long that we all forget how disappointing series 2 was? (If so, I think it might be working...)

[AllAboutMBTV]

Get your cassocks out! Dreamy McVicarson is back on June 18. (Seven episodes, so maybe one of them is the 'lost' Christmas special.)

[dargosmydaddy]

Series 3 ITV trailer

Edited April 24, 2017 by dargosmydaddy

[Trey]

On 2017-04-14 at 1:54 PM, AllAboutMBTV said:

Get your cassocks out! Dreamy McVicarson is back on June 18. (Seven episodes, so maybe one of them is the 'lost' Christmas special.)

According to the Masterpiece website, the Christmas episode will be the first one aired, on June 18.

Masterpiece Schedule

[Tosia]

I've been watching Happy Valley whet James Norton plays a really bad guy.

After you get over identifying  James as the beautiful and good Grantchester, he acts his ass off as the (still) beautiful, but very horrible Tommy Lee Royce. 

It's a tough watch cuz of the violence, actual and implied, but Sarah Lancashire is awesome on Police Seargent Catherine. 

[magdalene]

Happy Valley is terrific but brutal.  There is one episode that would have turned me into a nail biter were I so inclined.

Is there going to be a fourth series of Grantchester?  I saw that James Norton is doing a crime series for the BBC now. He seems to be very much in demand.

[Percysowner]

Masterpiece Studio podcast posted Al Weaver’s Leonard Finch Is Still Learning to Love Himself

[SusanSunflower]

as of 8 hours ago, season 4 is up in the air 

http://www.mirror.co.uk/tv/tv-news/grantchester-could-return-fourth-series-10901682

because "Norton is a hot property now and might not be available"  .. They suggest it could be back with a new lead or leads, as Death in Paradise apparently did ... (or they're trying to get Norton to reconsider his future and/or salary demands) 

Not everything shows up on IMDB but here's his 

http://www.imdb.com/name/nm3584268/

the finale left me wondering about his future in acting 

Spoiler

given his perfuntory and shallow acting/characterization of losing-girl, losing/regaining vocation, relationship with Georgy, etc. etc.   ... nuf  

[MissLucas]

I think Norton is in that sweet spot Cumberbatch inhabited a couple of years ago. Hot tv-property bound to leap to the big screen provided the right part comes along and I wouldn't blame him in the least for doing so. (I'm actually wishing for that to happen because being tied to that cheap Thorn Birds rip-off isn't doing him any favors.)

As for replacing the leads on Grantchester - the show has already veered so far from the books that it really doesn't matter anyway.

[dubbel zout]

I think to the larger public Norton is still mostly unknown. None of the TV shows he's done approach the exposure that Sherlock gave Cumberbatch. But I don't disagree he's at the point where now's the time to capitalize on getting movie roles. His traditional good looks could pigeonhole him, so it will be interesting to see what he does.

[JudyObscure]

Norton was in a "War and Peace," mini-series last year that I just loved.  His acting was fine and it didn't hurt that he looked fabulous in the Russian uniform.War and Peace

[dargosmydaddy]

After watching him in Happy Valley, I will never not be impressed with Norton as an actor. His range is fantastic.

If Grantchester were to continue with Leonard as the main focus, I'd watch... though the potential for continued angst would unfortunately remain...

[dubbel zout]

Norton was so good—so creepy—in Happy Valley. Man, that was a gut-wrenching show.

[magdalene]

Norton can definitely act - it's the abysmal soap opera writing that hasn't done him any favors on Grantchester.  For his career he should walk away from Grantchester.  Though he clearly enjoyed making the show and goofing around with Robson Green, so  if they can work the scheduling out and pay him enough......?

[magdalene]

Lots of rumors going around in the British press over the fate of the show, with talk whether Grantchester could go on without Norton.

http://decider.com/2017/08/02/grantchester-season-4/

Obviously British drama hits have carried on successfully when actors left - like Downton Abbey or Death In Paradise. Could they do that with Grantchester?  I guess they are weighing that now.

Would you guys be willing to accept another actor as a new vicar in Grantchester?

[dargosmydaddy]

Eh... if we still got Leonard, Mrs. M-- er, Mrs. C, and Dickens, I'd give it a shot.

But unless they're completely recasting Sidney (which would just be weird), I'm not sure how they'd explain his absence. After the crap he just pulled, I don't think he's getting a promotion any time soon. And if he's going to flip flop again and they're going to say he left the church after all... I mean, I guess they can't assassinate his character worse than it has been the last couple seasons, but please no. And as much frustration as I've felt toward Sidney, I'd still hate to see him killed off...

[Kohola3]

A new vicar that miraculously becomes best friends with Geordie?  Can't see it.  A new actor that assumes Sidney's character?  Maybe.

[dargosmydaddy]

Oh, I'm totally down with them getting rid of Geordie, too! Though I guess Masterpiece Mystery might take issue if they stopped with the case of the week... 

Maybe it could be a season-long arc solving the murders of Sydney and Geordie as the new vicar and copper settle in to their lives at Grantchester. (I'm kidding.)