Endeavour star teases "subtle" tribute to Morse in final ever scenes
Shaun Evans has revealed that only the "more discerning viewer" will realise what they've done in final Endeavour scenes.
Endeavour is drawing to a close this year with its final ninth season, and the stars of the Inspector Morse spin-off series have now revealed what fans can expect from the drama's final episodes.
Speaking to ITV about the upcoming season, lead Shaun Evans (who stars as DC Endeavour Morse) was asked whether there are any moments in the final episode that pay due tribute to both Morse creator/author Colin Dexter and John Thaw, who played Morse in seven seasons of Inspector Morse.
He said: “We always try to give a nod to Colin Dexter throughout, which viewers can try to discover. And especially to John Thaw in this final season. It feels like a handover.
“We spent days and days filming the very last scenes at Blenheim Palace and the shots we have used I find very satisfying. It’s perfect in its way. Hats off to the director Kate Saxon on that one. With nods and echoes in the final Endeavour episode to the very first Inspector Morse film - The Dead of Jericho - and the very last - The Remorseful Day."
He added: "But it’s only the more discerning viewer who will realise what we have done. Those who have maybe watched all of the Inspector Morse episodes and all of the Endeavour series. We wanted to be fleet of foot about it. To do it with a sleight of hand and not to hit it on the head. It’s a subtle thing that fits perfectly into our story.
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"It’s only there if you are really looking for it. And if you’re not you won’t even realise that you’ve missed it. And that’s OK too.”
After 11 long years on our TV screens, the beloved ITV series will finish with three episodes, bringing the total for the entire series up to 36, all filmed in Oxford.
When asked what he and the rest of the Endeavour team wanted to achieve with this final season, Roger Allam (who stars as DI Fred Thursday) said: “We wanted there to be an end. A point where Endeavour can move off into John Thaw’s Inspector Morse. It felt the right time. We had done plenty of films.
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"From my point of view, I also wanted something that had emotional heft that gave a good reason why Morse never mentioned Thursday in the later John Thaw years. Which I think we do satisfactorily in this. I think we covered all of those bases very well."
He continued: “Thursday says to Chief Supt Reginald Bright (Anton Lesser) in this season that Endeavour is the soul of discretion and if a secret wants keeping, Morse will take it to the grave.
"And, as the audience will discover, there is something about Thursday that Endeavour will, indeed, take to his grave. There are also echoes of Inspector Morse in the final episode which I hope will be emotionally satisfying for the audience.”
So, while it's sad that this is the final season, we can remain excited in the fact that it will be a fitting end to the Inspector Morse series.
Endeavour returns to ITV1 soon. Check out more of our Drama coverage or visit our TV Guide and Streaming Guide to find out what’s on.
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Authors
Morgan Cormack is a Drama Writer for Radio Times, covering everything drama-related on TV and streaming. She previously worked at Stylist as an Entertainment Writer. Alongside her past work in content marketing and as a freelancer, she possesses a BA in English Literature.
