Patrick Robinson Talks The Last Kingdom

Religious Fervour

Patrick Robinson who plays Father Benedict in The Last Kingdom just spoke about the new series coming soon…

Where do we find your character, Father Benedict, in season five? 

We find him having been brought in by Queen Aethelflaed, and he’s there to bring Christianity to Rumcofa. He’s been on his own little journey, and this is one way he can sort of pay his debts. And I can just leave it there because that’s his flaw. He’s a bit of a gambler, he owes a few quid here and there, and this is one way of paying off his debt. 

What was it like working with Alexander Dreymon as a director? 

Working with Alex was great. He’s so accomplished, and it didn’t seem out of place that he was in it and directing it. Obviously he’s been there from the word go so he knows it pretty well. He’s got the experience and knows the story and the place and the people. So yes, Alex was great. 

Discuss the scale of the show. 

When I saw the scale I was like, ‘Wow, this is a seriously big production!’ And I’ve worked quite a bit, and been on film sets, but this one is fantastic. Where it is, the lake, all the buildings, the whole town, and in another studio you’ve got another part of the world, Rumcofa there. They’ve done brilliantly with the whole thing, the whole scale is just fantastic. 

What are the themes of The Last Kingdom? 

It’s love, it’s power, it’s control, it’s family, it’s ambition. It’s all the human qualities that we all experience to a certain degree. But in the end, it’s about love. 22 

What was it like doing the action scenes? 

Being here and doing this has been fantastic, and this is going to sound really weird, but I wish I was younger. In other words, doing a production like this, if I was younger I’d get more enjoyment out of all the action that’s going on and wishing I could do it. All the horseriding, all the battle scenes, the fights, all of that. If it was happening 10, 15 years ago, I’d be right there saying, ‘Yes, give me that, let me try this.’ I’m still part of it but there’s a bit of me that says, ‘Oh I wish!’