Speaker 1: Now I want to treat this is. We do speak
Speaker 1: to great people on this show, but not every day
Speaker 1: do we get to speak to an iconic British actor.
Speaker 1: His name is Chris Marshall, and you'd know him as
Speaker 1: a man who shot to start and playing Colin Frizzell
Speaker 1: in a little Christmas rom com Love Actually, you know
Speaker 1: what I mean. Have a listen to this.
Speaker 2: Fair Wow, failure America.
Speaker 1: What's out here?
Speaker 2: Comes Colin frizzle and he's gone to big Oh my god,
Speaker 2: are you from England? That is so cute.
Speaker 1: Since then, Chris has been starring in a string of classics,
Speaker 1: including Death at a Funeral, A Few Best Men, I
Speaker 1: love that movie, and even Shakespeare's Merchant of Venice. He's
Speaker 1: not stranger to the silver screen as well. For the
Speaker 1: better part of a decade, he's played Detective Inspector Humphrey Goodman,
Speaker 1: originally in Death in Paradise and in the spin off
Speaker 1: Beyond Paradise and in Great News for crime fans. Chris
Speaker 1: is returning as Detective Inspector Goodman for season three Beyond Paradise,
Speaker 1: which is streaming now on rit Box. And I am
Speaker 1: delighted to say that the great man is on the line.
Speaker 2: Good day, Chris, Hey Luke, thank you so much for
Speaker 2: the introduction.
Speaker 1: Wow, no, my terrific to speak to you. I loved
Speaker 1: your work and I've got to say, and I don't know,
Speaker 1: you know why it hasn't been a thing but a
Speaker 1: few best men. I cacked brackets meaning laugh myself, silly,
Speaker 1: close brackets myself at your work in that with Olivia
Speaker 1: Newton John and the rest of the cast. It was
Speaker 1: just a real gift. Thank you for that.
Speaker 2: Oh, bless you, thank you. I had such a good
Speaker 2: time making that movie in Yeah, Fox Studios in Sydney
Speaker 2: and you know, and up at the Blue Mountains, Necker Toomber.
Speaker 2: It's fantasy.
Speaker 1: Yeah, yeah, it was such good fun. I'll ask you
Speaker 1: any briefly about love actually, because you're not here to
Speaker 1: talk about that. Although it's such a big thing, obviously,
Speaker 1: we have to touch on it. For those that haven't
Speaker 1: seen you play Detective Inspector Humphrey Goodman. He's a distinctive character,
Speaker 1: isn't He's quirky, he's brilliant, but he's deeply human. Is
Speaker 1: that how you describe him?
Speaker 2: Yeah, I think he's sort of I mean, to me,
Speaker 2: he's a sort of Melaingree. It's sort of a whole
Speaker 2: mix up of all my sort of favorite detectives growing up.
Speaker 2: You know, there's a bit of Marble in there. There's
Speaker 2: a bit of a bit of Colombo, you know, there's
Speaker 2: a bit of but also there's a bit of Harold
Speaker 2: Lloyd and a bit of Jack Tatti in there as well.
Speaker 2: You know, he's sort of, you know, he's sort of
Speaker 2: he's very human, but he's got a good moral compass.
Speaker 2: But he's also nobody's full, you know, and he's quite
Speaker 2: yspractic as well and clumsy and yeah, but he's you know,
Speaker 2: he's a brilliant detective and he's got a real good
Speaker 2: eye for a crime solving a crime. Yeah.
Speaker 1: Yeah, I wonder from your point of view. I mean,
Speaker 1: I mean, this is what you do, and you do
Speaker 1: it so well, but when you come back for another season,
Speaker 1: you've kind of, I guess in a way, got to
Speaker 1: pick up from where you're left off. I've heard you
Speaker 1: talk about putting on the shoes and that gets you
Speaker 1: in the character. But is that a difficult thing to do?
Speaker 1: You know, you do a series, you take a break,
Speaker 1: then you come back, and it is kind of like
Speaker 1: picking up where you're left off. But so much time
Speaker 1: might have passed, you.
Speaker 2: Know, in between the me leaving Death in Paradise and
Speaker 2: then reappraising the character sort of you know, the characters
Speaker 2: sort of rebirth and Gil on Paradise sort of like
Speaker 2: three or four years. So, I mean, yeah, that was
Speaker 2: quite difficult picking that up again. But you know, it's
Speaker 2: when you put the clothes on and you know, he's
Speaker 2: a big linen wearer. I don't wear linen myself, but
Speaker 2: the big linen wearer, you know, and you want to
Speaker 2: put the clothes on it. And this, like I said before,
Speaker 2: especially the shoes. Yes, the shoes is I don't know.
Speaker 2: You get the back and you know, and I remember
Speaker 2: rifling through my pockets of an old jacket that I
Speaker 2: had on the original show and all my old notes
Speaker 2: were still in there.
Speaker 1: Oh wow.
Speaker 2: So after about four years, so, I mean, it was
Speaker 2: just it was just like stepping back literally into another
Speaker 2: man's shoes, you know. And yeah, it's but from season
Speaker 2: to season it's not too hard.
Speaker 1: Though, right Are you too classy to wear linen? Is
Speaker 1: that what you're saying to me?
Speaker 2: No, No, I know I'm too I think I'm too tall,
Speaker 2: to wear linen. I think you know what I mean. No,
Speaker 2: I do. If you're really tall, if you're a really
Speaker 2: tall bloke, yeah, linen can get a bit wishy washy
Speaker 2: on you. You know it can give me. It's a
Speaker 2: bit flowy, a bit more cut, you know, a little
Speaker 2: bit more tie, a bit of on the clothes. Otherwise
Speaker 2: I look like a bit of a misshapen golf club.
Speaker 2: You know what.
Speaker 1: We had some photos down here at work a few
Speaker 1: weeks ago, and I'm assumed I hide to you six
Speaker 1: three or six four or something, and I wore linen.
Speaker 1: Actually I brought in half a dozen shirts, and the
Speaker 1: wardrobe lady said wear linen. And the photos came back
Speaker 1: and I said, I look so wishy washy. If only
Speaker 1: we'd spoken before, If only we'd spoken before. Am I right?
Speaker 1: My right? You were born on the first of April,
Speaker 1: And if that's true, is when you were younger, and
Speaker 1: did you get pranked, probably teased about your birthday on
Speaker 1: April Fool's Day? And you know, you promise to buy
Speaker 1: it and you end up with a matchbox car or something.
Speaker 2: You know why, It would be a great story, But
Speaker 2: that's just don't believe everything. You read on the internet.
Speaker 2: My birthday is on the eleventh of April, so it's
Speaker 2: mister one off there, one off. It's a good story.
Speaker 2: So let's let's just pretend it is the first of April.
Speaker 1: Yeah, it's okay, Well, let's do that. Let's do that.
Speaker 1: For people that haven't seen the show, what do you
Speaker 1: hope they take from it? Mate?
Speaker 2: Do you know what? We live in quite weird times,
Speaker 2: and you know, I love all those really hard hitting,
Speaker 2: gritty cop dramas, and you know that they're they're great,
Speaker 2: they're great to watch, and but this is this is
Speaker 2: something that it's a bit of escapism, you know. It's
Speaker 2: it's sort of you know, like I mentioned Columbo and
Speaker 2: The Smile before, and another huge influence of mine was
Speaker 2: Jim Rockford, James Gonner in the Rockford Files. You know, ah,
Speaker 2: you know, and it's all it's all a bit tongue
Speaker 2: in cheek. It's all done a bit lightheartedly, and I think,
Speaker 2: you know, there's a bit of escapism, and we need
Speaker 2: a bit of escapism. It's a puzzle to it. Sit down,
Speaker 2: it's cross demographic. You can sit down. You can watch
Speaker 2: it with your kids, your your mum and your dog.
Speaker 2: You know, it's it's good, it's a good family viewing,
Speaker 2: but it's good fun. It's it's there's a puzzle you
Speaker 2: can work out, you know, it's you know, puts a
Speaker 2: smile on your face.
Speaker 1: You know what I was about to say. You know what, Chris,
Speaker 1: who puts a smile on your face? That's exactly That's
Speaker 1: exactly right. And you know what, to a large point,
Speaker 1: I think that's what in entertainment we're supposed to do. Largely.
Speaker 1: I mean, you can sit down for as long as
Speaker 1: you need to, and you don't feel bad about things.
Speaker 1: You feel like about stuff, and you might have been
Speaker 1: forced to think a bit and been forced to laugh
Speaker 1: a bit. And isn't that isn't that partly what we're
Speaker 1: meant to do? Six episodes in this series? Tell me
Speaker 1: about the making of it. It's the Devon and Cornwell.
Speaker 1: Is that where you should it?
Speaker 2: Yeah? So the last of two counties that stick out
Speaker 2: and sort of peninsula at the bottom in the southwest
Speaker 2: of the UK, Devon and Cornwall. There's a great rivalry
Speaker 2: between the two counties. I mean it's quite visceral actually,
Speaker 2: so we film in both counties, even though technically the
Speaker 2: show is set in Devon, and you know there's a
Speaker 2: big argument about I believe you guys call it a
Speaker 2: Devonshire tea over here.
Speaker 1: Yes, yeah, well.
Speaker 2: There's a big argument about how you have your jam
Speaker 2: and how you have your cream. Yes, in Cornwall, Cornwall
Speaker 2: and Devon have it very differently. It's it's real, mate,
Speaker 2: it's real.
Speaker 1: It's hang on, I've got I've got to ask you
Speaker 1: how differently I have it.
Speaker 2: So let me get this right. So Cornwall has it
Speaker 2: jam first, jam first, cream on top, and Devon Devon
Speaker 2: shared does the reverse right are you?
Speaker 1: Are you allowed to have a preferred option or is
Speaker 1: that going to spoil things?
Speaker 2: Yeah? I do have a preferred option, I have to say,
Speaker 2: and that is the jam first. Yeah. And they even
Speaker 2: call each other jam first, jam first and cream first
Speaker 2: instead of Devonshare and Cornish they do. I mean, it's
Speaker 2: a it's a real thing. So yeah, we we've done.
Speaker 2: That's very beautiful, you know. I mean, I don't know
Speaker 2: how many people are aware of Devon and Cornwall in
Speaker 2: OZ but or you know, or have visited. But we've
Speaker 2: we've got beautiful beaches down there, you know, we've got
Speaker 2: surf where it right onto the Atlantic. The amasis you know,
Speaker 2: really lovely blue. It's cold. I'm going to say it's cold,
Speaker 2: but you know, it's just about for about a week
Speaker 2: in the summer. You can get in with your board shorts.
Speaker 2: Oh boys, it's not bad.
Speaker 1: And is it far from your home?
Speaker 2: Yes, probably about three hour drive my home, so you
Speaker 2: can go home every weekend.
Speaker 1: Oh wow, that's good.
Speaker 2: Yeah, it's okay, it's not too bad. So it beats
Speaker 2: you know, some of the locations I've filmed in. You
Speaker 2: can go home and see the kids. And actually my
Speaker 2: kids are even in this series as well, so.
Speaker 1: Oh, fantastic, fantastic. Isn't that wonderful? Actually I was reading
Speaker 1: about the some of the episodes, and until you told
Speaker 1: me that about Devon and Cornwall, I didn't realize. But
Speaker 1: a body's discovered in a river on the county border,
Speaker 1: so you've got to collaborate with Cornish counterparts. So now
Speaker 1: knowing that, that makes life very interesting, I imagine.
Speaker 2: Yeah, and also there's there's a there's a brilliant scene
Speaker 2: with the whole scone thing going on as well. So okay,
Speaker 2: so I hope your your listeners enjoy that when they
Speaker 2: see that. So yeah, it's all good, it's all going on.
Speaker 1: We certainly will. I don't know why I'm reluctant to
Speaker 1: talk about love actually partly mate, because you've done so
Speaker 1: much else. But this has become just a big thing,
Speaker 1: I know, around Thanksgiving and Christmas in America, but here
Speaker 1: in Australia we all watch it. I certainly do every
Speaker 1: every Christmas. And the big Knob line, which I don't
Speaker 1: know if it was scripted, well, if it was your work,
Speaker 1: but I mean it is one of those standouts, isn't it.
Speaker 2: Yeah it is, And it was kind of improvised on
Speaker 2: the day that one, you know, certainly the way I
Speaker 2: sang it as well, and yes, it just you know,
Speaker 2: one of those things that just came out really and yeah,
Speaker 2: and it's amazing as me that it has become such
Speaker 2: an iconic line. I mean, people shouting at me in
Speaker 2: the street, which is you know interesting when I'm with
Speaker 2: my kids people showing big knob at me. But you know,
Speaker 2: it's what is that about that I was exposed to? Yeah?
Speaker 2: So yeah, so, but it's you know, it's I mean,
Speaker 2: we only did about thirteen fourteen days filming on it
Speaker 2: because everyone had such a different storyline. So yeah, to
Speaker 2: do thirteen fourteen days on something, it's quite small in
Speaker 2: the ground scheme of things, and it's become such an
Speaker 2: iconic part of the zeitgeist, really part of the part
Speaker 2: of the sort of the firmament, you know, if that's
Speaker 2: the right word to use.
Speaker 1: Yeah, yeah, well not, let's go with it. You let
Speaker 1: me away with that, right, So let's go with that.
Speaker 2: What they hell didn't say? Fundament? You know that.
Speaker 1: You must love Australia. Look, I know you don't spend
Speaker 1: every waking moment here, but I talked about the Living
Speaker 1: Good and John movie and you've been you've been here
Speaker 1: a bit. Do you think do you think Ausie's, even
Speaker 1: though we love to smash each other in cricket, but
Speaker 1: do you think Ozzie's and and Bridge when it all
Speaker 1: boils down are pretty close, aren't they?
Speaker 2: Yeah? You know, I think that we're kindred really. I
Speaker 2: think we're like, you know, we're like cousins really, And
Speaker 2: I love Oz. I mean I've used to live in
Speaker 2: down near Bondi when I was making the movie, as
Speaker 2: I've said to you before, and and then I did
Speaker 2: the sequel to a Few Best Men, A Few Less Men,
Speaker 2: living out in Perth in w A. And you know,
Speaker 2: I just it was, you know, I love it over here.
Speaker 2: I just we've got the same sense of hum and
Speaker 2: I know which Josh each or other about the cricket
Speaker 2: and the rugby and what have you. But I just
Speaker 2: think I'm always treated so well here, you know, Luke,
Speaker 2: And it's I'm always treated so well kindly by Australia
Speaker 2: and Australian people, and just I love it here.
Speaker 1: Yeah, yeah, Well we love your work mate. Beyond Paradise
Speaker 1: season three, available to scream exclusively on a Bigger and
Speaker 1: Better brit Box. Love that a chat you, Chris. Safe
Speaker 1: travels mate, and thanks for all you've done.
Speaker 2: Cheers Luke, Take care mate,