Photographer: Joseph Sinclair / Styling: Sarah Harrison / Grooming: Alexis Day

Kris Marshall: 'I Never Truly Know A Character Until I've Chosen His Shoes'

Photographer: Joseph Sinclair / Styling: Sarah Harrison / Grooming: Alexis Day

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Kris Marshall: ‘I Never Truly Know A Character Until I’ve Chosen His Shoes’

4 weeks ago

Beyond Paradise is back on BBC One this evening. We sat down with lead star Kris Marshall to talk all about returning to Humphrey for a third series

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Beyond Paradise is back, whisking us back to sunny Shipton Abbott, where a whole host of knotty crimes need to be unravelled by our unconventional copper, DI Humphrey Goodman. We sat down with lead star Kris Marshall to talk all about series 3, plus reminisce on Love Actually.

‘Humphrey is always a delightful character to play’
Photographer: Joseph Sinclair
Styling: Sarah Harrison
Grooming: Alexis Day

Interview: Kris Marshall

Hi Kris, how’s life going at the moment?

Yeah… Well, I’ve had a coffee and it’s a good hair day, so we’re winning so far!

You’re about to return for series 3 of Beyond Paradise – can you give us an elevator pitch for the show?

How many floors are we riding? Let’s say three. Here we go: totally unique and heartwarming detective show where a somewhat crazy but quite brilliant (obvs!) six foot policeman who has an aversion to notebooks and driving moves to the seaside with his delightful and equally quirky fiancée, solving crimes and drinking milk with a 100 percent success rate. So far…

It also comes with a banging soundtrack and a duck called Selwyn. Watch with your kids, your Gran, and even your dog!

What can we expect from series 3?

We’ve got wonderful guest stars, rival cops, some kidnapping, some poisonings, bucketloads of sleuthing with a dose of humour and some genuinely touching moments, all set against the gorgeous backdrop of Devon and Cornwall.

You play DI Humphrey Goodman – how would you describe him?

The clue’s in his name: he’s a good man. Kind and understanding without any dark secrets or huge personality flaws, but someone who’s always been slightly out of the ordinary. He also detests capricious and arrogant people and takes great pleasure in mentally running rings round them while under the auspices of looking like he has no idea what he’s doing.

What’s his arc like in series 3?

I think we find him in pretty good form. He and Martha (his fiancée; Sally Bretton) are as strong as ever despite their recent struggles, and he’s settled down well in the local community. But then they’re about to get charmed, mystified and completely disarmed by a new and vulnerable nine-year-old girl who’s placed in foster care with them.

Humphrey Goodman (KRIS MARSHALL) & DS Esther Williams (ZAHRA AHMADI) in Beyond Paradise. (BBC/Red Planet Pictures/Laurie Sparham)

What was it like to return to the character after Death in Paradise?

He was always a delightful character to play because of his physical comedy and his brilliant mind, plus I’ve always had a particular penchant for playing the savant. I was a little worried about returning to play him after five years away, but as soon as I put on the crumpled linen jacket and the battered brogues it was like I’d never left! And as I’ve never really played another character for so many years, it’s fun to plot his changes and adjustments as he and I, if we’re being honest, get older.

Do you do anything special to get into character?

I’m all about shoes. What’s that trope about walking in another man’s shoes? Well, I never truly know a character until I’ve chosen his shoes. Once I’ve got the shoes sorted, it’s quite easy to get into character. That, a strong coffee and some Berocca, and I’m ready to go each morning!

Any standout moments from rehearsals or filming series 3?

Well obviously I don’t want to give away any spoilers, but filming a scene where I’m standing knee deep in a lake of unpasteurised milk at 2 am was one of those ‘And what did you do at work today, Dad?’ moments… I can still smell it now.

Anything you’re really excited for fans to see?

Well, the milk, obviously. And I love all the episodes, of course, but there’s a couple during the run that just really sing, and it’s wonderful when you get that alchemy. I’ve spoken about our guest stars, but there are some beautiful performances from people such as Hugh Dennis, Steve Oram, Caroline Quentin, Kevin McNally and Adrian Edmondson that I think the fans will be really excited to see.

What is the dynamic like on set?

We’re on our third year now, and we film for five months each season, with the same core cast and more or less the same crew. So you get to know each other extremely well, and you become like a big touring band. It’s a family away from home, and we socialise together as well. I’ve always tried to not take the filming too seriously. It’s long hours, five or six days a week for months, so we try to keep it pretty light.

Humphrey Goodman (KRIS MARSHALL) & Arthur Donalan (HUGH DENNIS) in Beyond Paradise. (BBC/Red Planet Pictures/Joss Barratt)

You’ve obviously worked on lots of projects across your career, but Love Actually is one of your most famous. What is that like to look back on?

It’s so funny it’s almost become part of the modern fabric. Especially at and around Christmas. Because we all had our own storylines, everyone kind of filmed on their own and only came together to film the final scenes. So the whole process felt really quite short. Of course, with Richard Curtis and the calibre of actors in the cast, you were aware it would be quite popular, but for it to be something people still return to and continue to talk about 25 years later is just mad. Great, though…

What do you think Colin would be up to these days? How do you think he’d be different if the film was made today?

Ah Jesus… Colin. I don’t know. I try not to think too much about where he’d be now. I think the spectrum is too broad. He could be running for office, or he could be in prison! Though I suppose that doesn’t seem too broad a spectrum these days. I always saw him as this fantasy character. The most unattractive man in the world goes to America and finds four gorgeous and willing girlfriends in the first bar he walks into. Then brings some home. I mean, that’s the joke. And I don’t think you could have Colin in the film these days without some great realisation or message about personal growth. So I don’t think it would work, really.

What has been your favourite project to date?

Where do I start? I’ve been so very lucky to do a job I absolutely love for nearly 30 years now, and with a side serving of travelling the world and working with some of the world’s biggest actors. Nearly every job is special in different ways and has different meaning.

There was a movie I did, however, with the Pygmies in the Congo jungle, called Oka. I was living in an abandoned sawmill a thousand miles from the nearest hospital, surrounded by wild elephants, the odd gorilla and more than a few deadly snakes. And the occasional warlord kidnapping. It was fortuitously at a time when I had no particular ties at home, no wife and kids, so I was just able to immerse myself in a world completely alien to me. A proper crazy adventure.

Any roles in the pipeline that you’re excited about? (If you’re allowed to tell us!)

At the moment I’m just mainly doing Beyond Paradise. That takes up a good five or six months of the year, so apart from that I tend to just stay at home, put the bins out, take my kids to school and do some surfing. I’ll do the odd thing if a good role or a play comes up. But I’m really fortunate that I can make a choice. For now, anyway. I’m sure that will change!

‘I try not to think too much about where Colin Frissell would be now’
Photographer: Joseph Sinclair
Styling: Sarah Harrison
Grooming: Alexis Day

Who has been your favourite actor to work with in the past?

That’s an impossible question! But I guess working with Al Pacino on The Merchant of Venice was really insightful. As a young actor, to watch first hand not only the process of one of cinema’s biggest stars but also how he behaves on a film set and how gracious he is, is something that was invaluable.

Also Heath Ledger. We spent months filming The Four Feathers in Morocco. He was just becoming a big star and he was really the most down to earth guy. It’s such a shame he went too early…

What’s your dream role?

To be honest, I never know until I read a script, and then you see a role and there’s a realisation that you can really bring something to it, and see yourself playing it. Then it’s just a question of hoping that you get it!

What’s a genre you’d like to do more of?

I think I’d love to do 1960’s movies or TV. I’ve done everything from Jane Austen and Shakespeare, Noel Coward to war films and modern dress. I do love the ‘60s, though.

Who is an actor, writer or director you’d love to work with?

I’d love to work with the Coen brothers. Or Paul Thomas Anderson. I think they’re visionaries.

If you could give advice to your 15-year-old self, what would it be?

Keep on what you’re doing and don’t give up. But put down that leather pencil tie and don’t pick up that cigarette habit… Because it’s hard to put that down.

How can we all live a little bit better?

Have some nuance. The world isn’t a binary place, it’s not linear. And try not to judge people immediately. And I’m telling myself this at the same time!