‘He's not coping…'

Shaun Evans tells TV Times a grief-stricken Endeavour is spiralling out of control as the crime drama returns

- CAREN CLARK

Almost a decade has passed since we were introduced to sharp-eyed, melancholic young Endeavour Morse at the start of ITV’s captivating period crime drama Endeavour.

Thankfully, Shaun Evans, who plays the opera-loving detective, is always much jollier than his dour alter ego. As TV Times joins him for a video chat about the new eighth series, it’s clear that exploring Endeavour’s brilliant but troubled mind since 2012 has been a labour of love for the actor, who also executive produces and regularly directs the Inspector Morse prequel.

The latest three-part run, set in 1971, puts Endeavour through the mill like never before.

Following the death of his married lover Violetta last series, the grief-stricken sleuth is increasingly falling prey to drink and the despair that plagued his older incarnation. Can DCI Fred Thursday (Roger Allam), Endeavour’s stoic boss, keep him in check?

Here, Shaun, 41, also currently starring as coxswain Elliot Glover in BBC1 thriller Vigil, tells us more…

Where do we find Endeavour at the start of this new series?

After Violetta’s death, he thought, ‘Was this person really in love with me?’ Women are his Achilles’ heel. A couple of months have passed and he’s not dealing with it well, but he’s trying not to reveal that.

But over the series, it becomes apparent he’s not coping. Drinking too much and numbing yourself is part of a bigger problem. I was keen to unpick that more in this series.

The last run saw Thursday and Endeavour at loggerheads – how is their relationship now?