Mark Williams Teases New Series Of The BBC’s Father Brown

The Father’s Back On The Case

The BBC’s adaptation of GK Chesterton’s Father Brown returns for a new series and here’s Mark Williams who plays Father Brown himself talking about the new run…

What can viewers look forward to seeing in series 13?

We’ve got a great range of stories this series; we’ve got kidnappings, murder, madness, and mirth.

Was it nice for Father Brown and the gang to finally get a trip to the seaside? What can you tell us about that episode? 

I have been angling for years for us to go to the seaside, because a trip on the charabanc is so 1950s. We finally worked it out and we went, of course, to Western-super-Mare, which was the first port of call for anybody in the Midlands because it is the closest seaside. We had a great time there and, of course, we ate the regulatory fish and chips. We also had the wonderful company of Maureen Lipman, Alex Macqueen and Julia Sawalha as our guest stars in that episode.

Speaking of guest stars, what was it like working with another stellar ensemble of guest actors in this series?

It’s always really flattering that people come and do the show, and we always look forward to seeing people; it’s one of the joys of doing this job. Because we have multiple episodes, we have different actors coming in regularly, for example Phil Daniels and Phil Cornwell this series, and I love it. I love just watching them as well. Sometimes I forget that I’m supposed to be acting too, because I’m too busy looking at other people!

We hear Father Brown’s job is in jeopardy this series when Bishop-elect Fox enacts revenge, what can you tell us about that?

Yes, Father Brown has a real crisis, and it looks like it’s unsolvable…until fate intervenes. We had a lot of fun filming that episode. There’s some great (and I use the word advisedly) some great bicycle work.

Were there any particularly funny moments on set this series?

Yes there were. We sometimes have trouble with the death scenes, because as you can imagine it’s hard sometimes to take it quite as seriously as we should. Daisy Beaumont and Nancy Carroll were intimately involved in Daisy’s character’s death this series, and that reduced us all to absolute giggles. You’ll see what I mean when you see the episode!

What is it like working with your fellow cast mates again?

It’s one of the great human pleasures to work as part of a team, especially when a team functions well (and we certainly do that) so it’s always a pleasure to get back together. Most of our crew have worked on previous Father Brown series and lots of people have come up through the ranks, as it were, and gained promotion and moved jobs etc., and that’s a real source of pride to us as a production.

Were there any particular Cotswolds filming locations which stood out to you this series?

My father was an architect, and he taught me to look at buildings. This year on Father Brown has been an absolute pleasure; we filmed in a remarkable National Trust-owned pub, The Fleece Inn, we filmed in a disused convent with a chapel built designed by Ninian Comper which is a jewel, we were in the best Baroque church in the UK at Great Witley, and also at a real prison. I get very excited about filming in remarkable buildings because it sets the scene so very well.

Finally, are there any other memorable moments for you from this series?

Father Brown wears the same costume most of the time, so it gets quite exciting when I get to wear a different costume. This year at the seaside, I got to wear a knotted handkerchief! My grandad used to wear one at the beach and roll up his trousers, and that’s exactly what I did.