{"id":4161,"date":"2021-09-09T16:28:00","date_gmt":"2021-09-09T14:28:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.radiotimes.com\/?p=706818"},"modified":"2021-09-09T17:12:13","modified_gmt":"2021-09-09T15:12:13","slug":"meet-the-cast-of-endeavour-series-8","status":"publish","type":"rss_feed","link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/rss_feed\/meet-the-cast-of-endeavour-series-8\/","title":{"rendered":"Meet the cast of Endeavour series 8"},"content":{"rendered":"

Everything you need to know about the cast and characters of ITV’s Inspector Morse prequel. <\/p>

By Flora Carr\n \t\t<\/p>

Published: Thursday, 09 September 2021 at 12:00 am<\/p>

\n\n

We don\u2019t have much longer to wait until Morse and Thursday return in Endeavour<\/a> \u2013 ITV\u2019s long-running detective drama.<\/p>\n

The upcoming series, which consists of four feature-length episodes, will see Oxford\u2019s detective duo take on another set of cases, while Morse (Vigil<\/a>\u2018s Shaun Evans) also mourns the loss of Violetta, his love interest from the previous season.<\/p>\n

Series eight\u2019s first episode, which airs on Sunday, centres around Oxford Wanderers\u2019 player Jack Swift, who Morse is assigned to protect when a threat to his life is made \u2013 but could the case be connected to a bomb explosion within a local college?<\/p>\n

Read on for everything you need to know about the cast and characters of Endeavour series eight.<\/p>\n

Shaun Evans plays Detective Sergeant Endeavour Morse<\/strong><\/h2>\n
\""MAMMOTH\"<\/div>
Shaun Evans plays Detective Sergeant Endeavour Morse<\/span><\/figcaption><\/div>\n

Who is Endeavour Morse?\u00a0<\/strong>Endeavour is the younger version of the iconic detective character played by John Thaw in the popular Inspector Morse series. He\u2019s highly intelligent but sometimes struggles to match the common touch or levels of tact displayed by his superior and mentor, DI Fred Thursday.<\/p>\n

Morse also previously fell in love with Fred\u2019s daughter, Joan Thursday, who did not appear in series seven but is returning for the eighth series.<\/p>\n

Speaking to\u00a0RadioTimes.com<\/strong> about his character\u2019s love life, Shaun Evans said:\u00a0\u201cWhat we meet in the Inspector Morse series, or indeed if you pick up the books [by author Colin Dexter], there\u2019s a guy who never ends up getting married, and is kind of broken at the beginning, I think.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cSo we have to have a bit of romance now in order to take us to that point. There has to be a sort of heartbreak thing.\u00a0<\/span>So I think just narratively there does need to be.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Where have I seen Shaun Evans before?\u00a0<\/strong>The actor and director is known for previous roles in Teachers, Silk, Ashes to Ashes and The Scandalous Lady W. He\u2019s also directed episodes of Casualty and Endeavour, and directed the opening episode of season seven.<\/p>\n

Roger Allam plays Detective Inspector Fred Thursday<\/strong><\/h2>\n
\""Roger\"<\/div>
Roger Allam plays Detective Inspector Fred Thursday<\/span><\/figcaption><\/div>\n

Who is Fred Thursday?\u00a0<\/strong>Fred is Morse\u2019s old-school boss and mentor, and is married to Win. The couple were estranged in series six after he lost their savings in the previous series, but they\u2019ve since reunited and we met them celebrating the New Year and decade (the 1970s) at the start of series seven.<\/p>\n

In an interview with\u00a0RadioTimes.com<\/strong>, Shaun Evans teased rising tensions<\/a> between Morse and his boss this season: \u201cIt\u2019s more interesting I think when there is a bit of conflict there, you know.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Where have I seen Roger Allam before?\u00a0<\/strong>The veteran actor has starred in Ashes to Ashes, Game of Thrones (he played Illyrio Mopatis<\/a>), The Missing, Parade\u2019s End, The Missing, The Book Thief, Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides and The Lady in the Van, to name but a few.<\/p>\n

Anton Lesser plays Chief Superintendent Reginald Bright<\/strong><\/h2>\n
\""endeavour_film2_28"\"<\/div>
Anton Lesser plays Chief Superintendent Reginald Bright<\/span><\/figcaption><\/div>\n

Who is Reginald Bright?\u00a0<\/strong>Last season, Reginald (Fred and Morse\u2019s boss) was\u00a0exiled to a demoralising job organising Oxford\u2019s traffic provisions, but he\u2019s since been reinstated. However, his wife is still struggling with a battle against cancer.<\/p>\n

Where have I seen Anton Lesser before?\u00a0<\/strong>International audiences will probably recognise Lesser as Qyburn, Queen Cersei\u2019s villainous advisor, in HBO\u2019s Game of Thrones. He\u2019s also starred in The Crown<\/a>, Disobedience, Wolf Hall, Ripper Street, Dickensian, The Hollow Crown and Agatha Christie\u2019s Poirot.<\/p>\n

Sean Rigby plays Detective Sergeant Jim Strange<\/strong><\/h2>\n
\""endeavour_episode1_28"\"<\/div>
Sean Rigby plays Detective Sergeant Jim Strange<\/span><\/figcaption><\/div>\n

Who is Jim Strange?\u00a0<\/strong>Morse\u2019s friend, colleague and former roommate, Strange is a\u00a0younger version of Morse\u2019s boss from the original Inspector Morse series.<\/p>\n

Where have I seen Sean Rigby before?\u00a0<\/strong>The actor starred in BBC historical drama Gunpowder, in addition to short films Isabella, The Baby Shower and Crossing Seas.<\/p>\n

Sara Vickers plays Joan Thursday<\/h2>\n
\""Sara\"<\/div>
ITV<\/i> <\/span>\n<\/div>\n

Who is Joan Thursday?\u00a0<\/strong>Joan is the daughter of Fred Thursday, who now does social work. She was absent from series seven but will be making a return in series eight. She had a romantic past with Morse, but perhaps something is on the cards with Jim Strange?<\/p>\n

Where have I seen Sara Vickers before?\u00a0<\/strong>Sara Vickers starred in 2019\u2019s Watchmen as Ms. Crookshanks and has appeared in Lovesick, The Crown, Shetland, Man Down, Privates, Taggart and Sunshine on Leith.<\/p>\n

Abigail Thaw plays Dorothea Frazil<\/strong><\/h2>\n
\""Episode\"<\/div>
Episode one guest star Naomi Battrick as Dr Naomi Benford, alongside Abigail Thaw who plays Dorothea Frazil<\/span><\/figcaption><\/div>\n

Who is Dorothea Frazil?\u00a0<\/strong>Dorothea is the editor of the real-life Oxford Mail newspaper, and staunch supporter of women\u2019s rights. Over the series she\u2019s established a friendship with Morse.<\/p>\n

Where have I seen Abigail Thaw before?\u00a0<\/strong>The daughter of original Morse actor John Thaw, she\u2019s starred in Black Mirror, Love Soup, I Want My Wife Back, Doctors, Casualty and The Bill, among others.<\/p>\n

James Bradshaw plays Dr Max DeBryn<\/strong><\/h2>\n
\""endeavour_film_3_09"\"<\/div>
James Bradshaw plays Dr Max DeBryn<\/span><\/figcaption><\/div>\n

Who is Dr Max DeBryn? <\/strong>Max is the Home Office Pathologist, and a younger version of a character who appeared in early episodes of the original Inspector Morse series (played by Peter Woodthorpe).<\/p>\n

Where have I seen James Bradshaw before?\u00a0<\/strong>Bradshaw is known for playing DS Geoff Thorpe in Hollyoaks and Duncan on Primeval. He\u2019s also starred in Doctors, EastEnders, Coronation Street, Heartbeat, Close to the Enemy and Mile High.<\/p>\n

Caroline O\u2019Neill plays Win Thursday<\/strong><\/h2>\n
\""Screen\"<\/div>
Caroline O\u2019Neill plays Win Thursday<\/span><\/figcaption><\/div>\n

Who is Win Thursday?<\/strong>\u00a0Fred\u2019s wife, and mother to their daughter, Joan.<\/p>\n

Where have I seen Caroline O\u2019Neill before?\u00a0<\/strong>The actress has starred in shows including\u00a0Last Tango in Halifax, Lewis, EastEnders, Coronation Street, Grange Hill,\u00a0Doc Martin, Queer as Folk, and Happy Valley.<\/p>\n

Julian Moore-Cook as Jack Swift<\/h2>\n
\""Endeavour"\"<\/div>
ITV<\/i> <\/span>\n<\/div>\n

Who is Jack Swift?\u00a0<\/strong>Jack Swift is the Oxford Wanderers\u2019 star striker who Morse is tasked with guarding after a threat against his life is made by the IRA.<\/p>\n

Where have I seen Julian Moore-Cook before?\u00a0<\/strong>Moore-Cook has appeared in Casualty, Mission: Impossible \u2013 Rogue Nation, Benidorm, Doctors and Holby City.<\/p>\n

Andrew Havill as Professor Stamfield<\/h2>\n
\""Andrew\"<\/div>
ITV<\/i> <\/span>\n<\/div>\n

Who is Professor Stamfield?\u00a0<\/strong>Professor Stamfield is the head of an Oxford college whose secretary is killed when she opens a package marked for Stamfield containing a bomb.<\/p>\n

Where have I seen Andrew Havill before?\u00a0<\/strong>Havill has appeared in Trust, Victoria, Vera, Call the Midwife, Sherlock and Spooks as well as Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, Downton Abbey, The Children Act and My Cousin Rachel.<\/p>\n

Endeavour series seven airs on ITV at 8pm on Sunday 12th September. Visit our TV Guide<\/a>\u00a0to see what\u2019s on tonight.\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Everything you need to know about the cast and characters of ITV’s Inspector Morse prequel. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":24,"featured_media":4162,"template":"","categories":[1],"acf":[],"uagb_featured_image_src":{"full":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/56\/2021\/09\/meet-the-cast-of-endeavour-series-8.jpg",2560,1707,false],"thumbnail":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/56\/2021\/09\/meet-the-cast-of-endeavour-series-8-150x150.jpg",150,150,true],"medium":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/56\/2021\/09\/meet-the-cast-of-endeavour-series-8-300x200.jpg",300,200,true],"medium_large":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/56\/2021\/09\/meet-the-cast-of-endeavour-series-8-768x512.jpg",768,512,true],"large":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/56\/2021\/09\/meet-the-cast-of-endeavour-series-8-1024x683.jpg",800,534,true],"1536x1536":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/56\/2021\/09\/meet-the-cast-of-endeavour-series-8-1536x1024.jpg",1536,1024,true],"2048x2048":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/56\/2021\/09\/meet-the-cast-of-endeavour-series-8-2048x1366.jpg",2048,1366,true]},"uagb_author_info":{"display_name":"importmanagerhub@sprylab.com","author_link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/author\/importmanagerhubsprylab-com\/"},"uagb_comment_info":0,"uagb_excerpt":"Everything you need to know about the cast and characters of ITV's Inspector Morse prequel.","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/rss_feed\/4161"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/rss_feed"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/rss_feed"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/24"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4162"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4161"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4161"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}