"Even when you think you've solved it, there's actually more and more and more."
New Disney Plus series Shardlake is a real mash-up of genres – based on the novels by CJ Sansom, it's part historical drama, part fictional murder mystery, with the titular lawyer, Matthew Shardlake, investigating a murder in Tudor England.
He is assigned to the case by Thomas Cromwell, after one of Cromwell's commissioners is killed while attempting to close a monastery. Shardlake is sent, along with Jack Barak, to both uncover the murderer, but also find reason to shut the monastery for good.
Arthur Hughes (Then Barbara Met Alan) stars in the series as the central character and, speaking at a recent Q&A, he revealed that viewers may have trouble if they're hoping to decipher just who the murderer is ahead of the big reveal.
Asked whether he was able to guess the murderer himself, Hughes said: "I think, reading it, I didn't. Because there's so many dead ends, red herrings, and there's just there's a lot of information. There's really so many layers to the story – it's quite twisty."
He continued: "Shardlake and Jack are kind of exploring every avenue and it's kind of impenetrable for them to get through for a while. These monks are like an organised crime family.
"And that's down to how it's written and how Stephen has presented this front that they give.
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"I couldn't guess, I think it's not just something you guess and it's done. It's quite a complex mystery, so even when you think you've solved it, there's actually more and more and more."
Alongside Hughes, the series also stars Sean Bean (Marriage) as Cromwell and Anthony Boyle (Manhunt) as Jack Barak, and this first season is based on the first of Sansom's books, Dissolution.
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Also featuring in the show's central cast are Babou Ceesay (We Hunt Together), Paul Kaye (Vera), Ruby Ashbourne Serkis (Becoming Elizabeth), Peter Firth (Spooks) and Kimberley Nixon (Fresh Meat), among others, and the book has been adapted by writer Stephen Butchard (The Good Mothers).
Shardlake premieres on Disney Plus on Wednesday 1st May. You can sign up to Disney Plus for £7.99 a month or £79.90 a year now.
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James Hibbs is a Drama Writer for Radio Times, covering programmes across both streaming platforms and linear channels. He previously worked in PR, first for a B2B agency and subsequently for international TV production company Fremantle. He possesses a BA in English and Theatre Studies and an NCTJ Level 5 Diploma in Journalism.
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