About the Character:  A widower, Richard Alderson is a born and bred Dales farmer and a man of few words. His land is leased from the Hulton family and Alderson works it alongside his daughters Helen and Jenny. Alderson is protective of his girls but also accepts how independently minded both are.

Where You’ve Seen Him Before:  Sharp PBS viewers may recall Pitts from roles like Mick “The Mouth” in MASTERPIECE productions of Roadkill and Chief Superintendent of New Scotland Yard in Season 2 of Sherlock, or from the PBS series Jamestown where he played landowner Edgar Massinger. In Britain he’s still recognized from his first TV job, that of portraying young rogue Archie Brooks in the soap drama, Emmerdale Farm from 1983-1993.

Fun Fact:  An actor, writer, and director, Pitts also started a podcast during the pandemic. He co-hosts Three Little Words with British comedian John Bishop. Bishop told Irish News, “We are two men from northern working-class backgrounds who cannot cope with our own frailties, so what we do is abuse each other.” Listen to their conversation with Rachel Shenton about words that have had an impact on her life.