Jace: I’m Jace Lacob and you’re listening to MASTERPIECE Studio.

Oxford, the city of dreaming spires… and the murder capital of Britain? To author Colin Dexter, the creator of Inspector Morse, the university town was the backdrop for a series of clever and unpredictable whodunits that were adapted over the past 35 years as a trio of mystery dramas: Inspector Morse, Inspector Lewis, and prequel series Endeavour.

Written by Russell Lewis, Endeavour follows a younger Morse as he solves crimes and catches murderers in the changing Oxford of the 1960s and ‘70s, while also dodging his own personal demons.

 

CLIP 

Cronyn: You think it’s the end? This is where it starts.

Thursday: That’s enough out of you.

Cronyn: We’re the same, you and me. We bear the same burden. Intelligence. To be clever is to be alone. Forever. I see it in you. I know who you couldn’t save, Morse.

 

For 11 years, MASTERPIECE viewers have watched Endeavour Morse — played by Shaun Evans — slowly transform closer and closer to the character played by John Thaw in the original Morse series, a solitary man who loves opera, crosswords, and his trademark Jaguar. And who emanated a sense of loss and an aura of mystery… even about his given name.

At the heart of the show, the relationship between Morse and his supervisor, Fred Thursday  — played by Roger Allam — pulses with complexity and tension. Are these two friends, a surrogate father-son, or something infinitely more complicated? Will Morse ever admit his feelings for Thursday’s daughter Joan before he loses his chance at happiness? And the burning question that prompted Endeavour in the first place: what ultimately made Morse… Morse?

Before the credits roll on Endeavour and we say farewell to this incarnation of the Oxford sleuth, after nine seasons on PBS, we’ve still got one more final go-around with Morse, Fred Thursday, and the gang at the Thames Valley Police.

 

CLIP

Thursday: Morse. 

Morse: Sir!

Strange: Hello matey. Back in the land of the living then?

Morse: Well, seemingly not. Who found him?

Strange: Staff. Clearing up this morning after last night’s due.

 

As difficult as it is for Morse to solve these puzzle-like mysteries, it can be just as tricky to keep track of every development in the overall narrative of Endeavour. 

We’ll be recapping the major plot points, so if you’re not yet caught up on the series and don’t want to hear spoilers, all episodes of Endeavour Seasons One through Eight are available for streaming on PBS Passport. 

So let’s go back to the beginning and make sure we’re all caught up on every clue, every chance meeting, and every furtive glance as we prepare to say goodbye to Endeavour…

 

[SEASON 1]

Our series begins with the pilot, as you might expect. But, don’t get too used to expecting anything with Endeavour, as this taut and unpredictable murder series will definitely keep you on your toes.

It’s June, 1965 and the Oxford City Police have requested additional officers from a nearby station to help with the search for a missing woman. Among these officers is a young Detective Constable Morse. Or, perhaps more accurately, Detective Constable E. Morse. While John Thaw’s Morse — of inspector Morse fame — was rather cagey about his given name, we’re told from the start that this Morse’s name is Endeavour Morse. 

He arrives at the Oxford City Police station where he meets Detective Sergeant Arthur Lott. Despite his lowly rank as a Detective Constable, we quickly learn that, well…even a young Morse will be Morse.

 

CLIP

DS Lott: Right, door to door. Get that lot circulated. You can’t tell from those, but she’s a redhead. Well developed for her age. Someone will have seen her. Sharps, officers, railways, commuters.

Morse: Commuters? If she left Oxford by train on Saturday afternoon, well, it’s unlikely she’ll have been seen by the weekday crowd, wouldn’t you think?

DS Lott: Well, I don’t think. I follow orders.

 

It becomes very clear over the course of Season One that what Morse lacks in basic police skills and general soft-skills, he more than makes up for with his brilliant deductive reasoning skills. 

Morse’s impressive detective prowess catches the attention of veteran detective inspector Fred Thursday. Although Thursday is Morse’s boss, the two quickly develop a close bond, as Morse is appointed his bagman — a position usually reserved for Detective Sergeants. Thursday introduces Morse to his wife Win — yes, that’s Fred and Winifred — and adult children Sam and Joan. This picture-perfect home provides a degree of refuge for both Thursday and Morse, offering a respite from the darkness of solving murders and the promise of homemade sandwiches for lunch.

We also meet the rest of the crew — Chief Superintendent Bright, DC Strange, DS Jakes, and the wryly sardonic pathologist, Dr. Max DeBryn.

By the time the curtain falls on Season One, Morse has already been dealt his fair share of misfortune. Not only does he get shot while solving a case, but his father also passes away. Rattled by all that’s happened, Morse takes some time off for the funeral and to clear his head.

 

CLIP

Thursday: Anything you need?

Morse: I’ll be back in a few days.

 

However, Morse’s brief leave of absence from Oxford extends well beyond a few days and into a few months…

 

[SEASON 2]

As Season Two opens, Morse remains quite shaken by the events of his last case, haunted by memories of being shot. But there’s no tonic like the distraction of another investigation to get Morse back on the horse.

 

CLIP

Strange: Alright, brace yourself. It’s a bit uh…alright.

Morse: Wait a minute. Name?

Strange: Take your pick. There’s about two dozen different business cards in his wallet.

 

Morse continues to prove his worth by identifying clues and solving complex cases. His seemingly outlandish theories are often disregarded during the investigations, but when he turns up irrefutable evidence and makes connections no one else does, his colleagues begin to see his unorthodox genius and respect him more as a detective. 

This is also a season for romance as Morse begins dating his neighbor, nurse Monica Hicks. At the same time, a budding romantic tension between Morse and Thursday’s daughter Joan keeps us wondering, will they or won’t they? 

Morse’s love life isn’t the only one on display this season… as Thursday runs into a past love he met years ago during the war. But, time has moved on for both lovers.

 

CLIP

Thursday: And you. All above everything I remember you. Your eyes.

Luisa: No, you can’t say these things. You can’t. Not to me.

Thursday: I’ve no one else to say them to.

 

Meanwhile, Constable Strange has failed his sergeants exam by three frustrating points, and decides to join the Freemasons in an effort to help his flagging career. 

There is also talk of merging the Oxford City Police and the Oxfordshire Constabulary into the Thames Valley Police — which Morse fans will recognize as our future Morse’s HQ. The plan is to build the new station at Blenheim Vale, an old correctional facility with a dark history of its own, one involving Oxford City Police’s own DS Jakes.

 

CLIP

Morse: I need your help. Thursday’s out at Blenheim Vale. I’ve a car outside, come on.

Jakes: Blenheim Vale? I can’t.

Morse: Little Pete. Myers couldn’t remember your last name. Were you there?

Jakes: To some of us bastards, it’s more than just a name.

 

All the while, a police conspiracy lurking in the background finally comes to a climax during a shoot out at the abandoned Blenheim Vale facility. Morse and Thursday defend themselves against Assistant Chief Constable Clive Deare, who reveals that he killed the Chief Constable and framed Morse for the murder.

Season Two ends on a somber note with Thursday shot, and Morse arrested and imprisoned for a crime he did not commit… 

 

[SEASON 3]

As we move into Season Three, we find Morse again rattled by the events of the previous season. He’s out of jail, but hasn’t returned to his old life. 

 

CLIP

Thursday: Have you seen him?

Jakes: Not since he got out. No one has.

 

Instead, Morse has been lying low, taking refuge in a humble lake house on the outskirts of town. He befriends some locals, including a lonely millionaire who quite resembles Jay Gatsby.

But it isn’t long before the old Oxford crew is reunited. A new murder case brings Thursday, Jakes, and Strange to the lake where Morse is hiding out. Morse tries to resist getting involved, but finally accepts his fate as a detective and rejoins the station. 

Season Three is a wild season, complete with grand parties, a tiger on the loose, communes, and a dramatic bank robbery. And, it’s full of changes. Strange finally passes his sergeants exam, just as DS Jakes announces that he’s moving to America with his fiancée. As Strange takes over for Jakes, Oxford’s first female constable, Shirley Trewlove, takes Strange’s old position — a role she’s very well suited for.  

 

CLIP

Morse: Trewlove? I’m detective Morse. Anything germane?

Trewlove: Not much. The deceased moved in a year ago last February. Nobody saw much of him. Out at his studio in the day and the Turf most nights.

Morse: Friends? Girlfriend?

Trewlove: One or two models, but no names, I’m afraid. Last person to see him from here was a Miss Treadwell. Ground floor flat. She saw him heading out about 7:00 last night. There’s some talk that he may have been at Beaufort. And he was behind with the rent.

Morse: (Chuckles)

Trewlove: What?

Morse: Your idea of “not much.”

Trewlove: Have I missed something?

Morse: No, no. It’s commendably thorough.

 

After a good deal of studying, Morse sits down for his own sergeants exam. And it seems to go very well, as he finishes with time to spare. 

Fred Thursday returns to action after suffering a gunshot wound last season. And although he’s pretty much recovered, a piece of the bullet remains lodged in his lung, bringing on terrible coughing fits. 

The Thursday household gets a little smaller this season as Fred and Win send their son Sam off to the army. 

Towards the end of the season, a horrifying bank robbery turns into a violent hostage situation, trapping Morse and Joan in the bank. It’s a turn of events that shakes Joan Thursday to the core. Fred Thursday steps in to save the day, right after he coughs up a mess of blood and metal, and rescues his daughter and Morse from the crazed bank robbers. This scene brings out the more feral side of Fred Thursday, as Morse has to beg his boss not to kill the bank robber who threatened his daughter.

 

CLIP

Bank Robber: Gah! Do it, do it!

Morse: Sir, don’t. No here, not like this! Don’t let her see you do this!

Joan: Dad!

Morse: Show them who you are.

Thursday: This is who I am.

Morse: No, it never has been! We hold the line. If you cross it now, then there’s no way back.

 

By the end of the season, Joan slips away from Oxford without a word to her parents about where she’s headed. The shock of the bank heist and its aftermath propels Joan away from everything she’s known in life until this point. Morse manages to catch her before she departs, but realizes there’s nothing he can do to prevent her from leaving. 

 

[SEASON 4]

Love, or the absence of it, seems to be on Morse’s mind at the beginning of Season Four. Memories of Joan dance around the young detective’s mind, while Joan’s disappearance has cast a dark shadow on the once bright Thursday household. Faced with an unexpectedly empty nest, Fred and Win are absolutely devastated.

And things aren’t looking up for Morse, either. That sergeant’s exam he felt so confident about didn’t bring the results he expected. Or any results, really. 

 

CLIP 

Morse: Failed?

Bright: “The Boards notes with regret that a number of examination papers never arrived for marking and were therefore classed an automatic failure.” Better luck next time, yes?

 

But the plot thickens as Bright later learns that Morse’s exam was the only one to go missing. Although disappointing, Morse doesn’t let it get to him, and he carries on with solving the seemingly endless number of murders in Oxford. Cases this season involve a nuclear power plant, a rock and roll band, mind-bending psychedelics, and a very early, very large computer that plays chess. 

Morse eventually tracks down Joan, only to find her in a relationship with a married man. She refuses to return to Oxford with Morse, and asks him to keep her location a secret. Thursday also manages to track down Joan. But his attempts to bring his daughter home are no more successful than Morse’s. Thursday, frustrated with the situation, roughs up Joan’s “boyfriend” in a parking garage. That same boyfriend, we later learn, roughs up Joan. 

Towards the end of this season, Morse is offered a job in London, a position he seriously considers. 

 

CLIP

Thursday: I’ll see you Monday then.

Morse: [sticks out his hand for a handshake]

Thursday: Monday, Morse. Handshakes are for goodbye.

 

This season concludes with Thursday and Morse receiving the George Medal from the Queen for their outstanding police work averting serious disaster at a local power plant. Thursday receives the medal in person, but Morse gets a phone call from the hospital that keeps him from the ceremony.  

At the hospital, Morse finds a battered Joan asleep in a hospital bed. The nurse tells him that Joan claims she “fell down the stairs” and the accident caused her to miscarry. By the end of this season, Thursday is promoted to Detective Chief Inspector, and Morse to Detective Sergeant. 

But is that enough to keep Morse at Cowley? If so, who will take Morse’s old position as Detective Constable? And is there any hope of happiness for Morse and Joan Thursday? That’s coming up after the break.    

 

MIDROLL

 

[SEASON 5]

Season Five brings about more change, and more new faces. Morse is now a Detective Sergeant, and a new title means new responsibilities. This season we meet the young and bright-eyed Detective Constable George Fancy, whom Morse is forced to mentor.  

 

CLIP

Fancy: Got any hobbies? Do you like sport?

Morse: Look, I don’t really go in for small talk, constable.

Fancy: George.

Morse: Or first names. Let’s just keep it to work and we’ll get along fine.  

 

But thankfully for Fancy, the rest of the crew is much warmer in welcoming him to the department. There’s more talk about the Thames Valley Constabulary and merger, and what this means for our particular station — Cowley — is still up in the air. 

Joan is back in Oxford this season, but living on her own, and working at a public advice center. 

 

CLIP

Morse: So are you back or are you just visiting?

Joan: Dad didn’t say? I’m back. Couple of weeks now. But not home.

Morse: They must be pleased all the same, your parents.

 

She runs into Morse and her father periodically. Morse still can’t bring himself to call her “Joan” and his continued use of the more formal “Miss Thursday” reminds us of the painful gulf between them. And while things aren’t quite what they used to be in the Thursday house, Joan’s return offers some much needed comfort for Fred and Win. 

The Thursday family continues to drive the drama in this season as Fred’s brother Charlie comes to town asking Fred for money. Without consulting Win, Fred decides to loan out all of his retirement savings to Charlie. Fred plans to retire once he gets the money back, but unfortunately Charlie loses it all. Fred and Win’s hard-earned retirement fund goes down the drain. While Fred is furious with Charlie, Win is beyond disappointed with Fred, so much so that this could be a breaking point. 

Season Five ends on a very turbulent note as Detective Constable George Fancy dies in a gang shootout. Forensics reveals that the bullet that killed Fancy doesn’t match any of the weapons found at the crime scene. In the wake of Fancy’s death, Bright resigns from his position, feeling as though he failed the young constable. 

 

CLIP

Bright: Well, when I arrived here three years ago I had such high hopes. What an ignominious end I have led you all to. I shall resign, of course.

Thursday: Sir…

Bright: No, I failed him. I failed my men. The station gone. My brightest and best cast to the four winds, and all is…brought to ruin.

 

And if that wasn’t enough, our beloved Cowley station is due to close its doors at the end of the season. Trewlove relocates to Scotland Yard, and Thursday rescinds his retirement request. At this moment, it seems as if things can’t get any worse. But, remember what we said about Endeavour and expectations…

 

[SEASON 6]

So, first things first, Morse has a mustache. New season, new look. It’s 1969 after all, and what better way to end the decade than with some polarizing facial hair. 

There was a significant shake up at the end of last season, and the old crew is so spread out with this merger, it’s hard to remember the way things used to be. 

 

CLIP

Bright: You’re settling in all right, are you? Things are not what they were, hmm? For any of us. Perhaps at the time, one doesn’t always appreciate one’s good fortune. But I’m sure inspector Thursday will be very pleased to have you back. As indeed—albeit at one remove—am I.

Morse: Well, thank you, sir.

 

Bright has been assigned to the traffic division, and appears in a road safety film that awards him mockery from others at the division. Thursday, Morse, and Strange are at Castle Gate, working under the malicious Ronnie Box and Alan Jago. Thursday has been knocked down to Detective Inspector, Strange is now working a managerial role, and Morse is on the beat as a uniformed police officer — a less than ideal situation for our old crew. 

The new guys in charge, Box and Jago, are your typical corrupt officers who mistreat not only suspects, but also those who work under them, especially Morse, whose work Box often takes credit for. Box and Jago respect Thursday a bit more and spend a lot of the season grooming him for their inner circle — a circle even more corrupt than what is seen on the surface.

 

CLIP

Strange: If Box’s investigation into who’s keeping Oxford supplied with heroin cut with quinine has stalled, maybe there’s a reason for it. You want to crack this thing, it’s down to us. Just watch your back here. I mean it. Trust no bugger. Even your closet. Be seeing you.

 

Box and Jago eventually get Thursday onto their unofficial payroll with money that comes from who knows where. In a moment of weakness, Thursday, who is desperate to earn back the retirement money his brother lost and win back, well, his wife Win, he succumbs to the bent coppers and takes the money. 

George Fancy’s murder remains unsolved, and with the way things are going at Castle Gate, Strange, Morse, and DeBryn decide to take the investigation into their own hands. Clues continue to mount, and justice feels as if it is on the horizon. 

Meanwhile, Morse being the thorough detective that he is, starts poking around in places that make certain higher-ups uncomfortable. 

 

CLIP

Construction Worker: Your boy’s sticking his beak in where it’s not wanted. You stop him or we will.

Thursday: You don’t know Morse.

 

Season Six comes to a dramatic close as Dr. DeBryn is taken hostage by Jago and his colleagues. There’s a final showdown between Jago and his men and the old crew of Morse, Thursday, and Strange. Jago reveals that he killed George Fancy, and then took over the Oxford drug smuggling scene. 

Just when it looks like good might not prevail over evil, Ronnie Box comes out of nowhere and fatally shoots Jago, while simultaneously taking a bullet himself. Box is rushed to the hospital. His odds of survival, we’re told, are 50/50. 

In the aftermath of what transpired with Box and Jago, the head of Castle Gate resigns in disgrace. Bright takes command of Castle Gate and re-appoints Thursday Detective Chief Inspector, and Strange and Morse Detective Sergeants. 

It would appear that almost everything is back to normal. I say “almost” because by the end of this season, Morse still has a mustache. 

 

[SEASON 7]

Season Seven takes place, rather appropriately, at the start of 1970. It’s a new decade full of promise, but in this line of work, you learn pretty quickly that some things just don’t change.

 

CLIP

Thursday: New year. New decade. New start. You always hope for better, don’t you? Bitter mornings, up in the dark and the cold, and the worst of human nature at the end of it. You start to wonder how many more of these you’ve got in you.

Frazil: No Morse today?

Thursday: Fortnight’s leave.

Frazil: Oh, yeah. Anywhere nice?

 

Morse took some well earned personal time and rang in the new year in Venice. While at an opera, he meets a young woman named Violetta, with whom he becomes intimately involved. 

Meanwhile, back in Oxford, several murders pile up on a towpath in town. Morse joins the case once he’s back from Venice, and is highly critical of how the investigation has been conducted in his absence — his criticisms pointed most sharply at Thursday. The tension between Morse and Thursday builds over the course of this season, and reaches an embarrassingly new height in Episode Three.

 

CLIP

Morse: Let’s not.

Thursday: How’s that? Let’s not what?

Morse: Oh, it doesn’t matter.

Thursday: No, no. Let’s not what?

Morse: Well, let’s not clutch at straws to save our blushes. Three women, one man. It’s the same killer for all. Whoever killed Molly Andrews killed this young woman.

Thursday: Oh, yeah? You’d like that to be true wouldn’t you? Show me up, “The old man’s losing his touch”—that it?

Morse: I didn’t say that.

Thursday: You don’t need to. But before you get all high and mighty, let’s not forget you had all this down for Naomi Kane’s killer.

Morse: Yes, I know. But if we’re being honest about it, it comes to something like this, you’ve never really had that much touch to lose, have you?

Strange: Morse…

Morse: Well, it’s true.

Thursday: This is what I get, is it? I’ve stuck my neck out for you more than you know.

Morse: Yes, of course you have. Who wouldn’t?

 

Morse and Thursday seem to lock horns more in this season than any other yet. And it reaches a point where Morse puts in a transfer to another station to avoid working alongside Thursday. They’re of opposite minds about cases, one in particular concerning multiple freak accidents. Morse considers it serious, while Thursday brushes them off as coincidences.

Morse meets a man named Ludo, a fellow opera lover and wine connoisseur who quickly befriends Morse. And much to Morse’s surprise, while at Ludo’s house, he finds out Ludo’s wife is none other than Violetta — the woman Morse met in Venice. Although he resists at first, Violetta and Morse pick up where they left off, this time in Oxford, and this time knowing what’s at stake. 

All the while, Morse stays hot on the trail of these freak accidents, and believes he knows the how and why of it, but not yet the who. It’s looking more and more like some type of insurance scam disguised as careless accidents. And unfortunately, the most recent victim is Mr. Bright’s own wife.

 

CLIP

Thursday: Dorothea Frazil just telephoned my office. There’s been an accident.

Bright: What?

Thursday: Your wife, sir.

Bright: Yes, I know my wife, Mrs. Bright. What, what? What are you saying?

Thursday: I’m very sorry, sir. She seems to have been hanging Christmas decorations. She looks to have taken a shock, sir. An electric shock. It’s fatal, sir.

 

The violence continues this season as Strange is stabbed while investigating the towpath killer case. And Morse heads to Venice after realizing the people behind these freak accidents are in fact Ludo and Violetta. But before he leaves, he sends Joan Thursday a letter for her father with all of the evidence behind the insurance scam. Also included in this letter is an apology from Morse to Thursday, taking full responsibility for the rift between them.

At the end of the final episode, Thursday rushes off to Venice and intercepts a shootout between Morse, Ludo, and Violetta. The season ends with Ludo dead, and Violetta dramatically dying in Morse’s arms. 

While Morse is once again left loveless and alone, it would appear as if harmony is restored between Thursday and Morse. 

 

[SEASON 8]

At last, we come to our most recent season — Season Eight. Years spent solving murders would take a toll on anyone, but it seems to be particularly taxing on Oxford’s brightest detective. Morse has been calling in sick on a regular basis because he’s either too drunk or too hungover to come to work. 

 

CLIP

Bright: And where’s Morse in all of this? One can generally depend upon him to contribute something useful.

Thursday: He’s off sick, sir.

Bright: He was off sick several days last month, wasn’t he? Is he seeing anyone?

Thursday: Not that I know, sir. He’s just a bit run down, I expect.

Bright: I’m no fool, Thursday, and nor are you. He’s not been himself for quite some time.

 

Detective Sergeant Strange returns to duty after some time spent recovering from his stab wound last season. And he musters up the courage to ask his boss’s daughter, Joan Thursday, out on a date, which quickly turns into two… 

As if to balance out the sunshine of young love, this season takes another dark turn as enlistee Sam Thursday goes AWOL, throwing Fred, Win, and Joan into a spiral of doubt and uncertainty. It takes all of Fred’s willpower to not step in and try to help locate his son. 

Although this season is only three episodes long, it spans almost the entirety of 1971, beginning in January and ending in November. We see cases involving a nudist colony, professional football stars, exploding packages, and a cozy, Shining-esque snowstorm murder mystery. But despite all of that excitement, what seems to be most front and center this season is Morse’s mental health. 

 

CLIP

Thursday: You’ve four weeks’ leave owing. Mr. Bright thinks you should take it now, and so do I. Deal with…whatever you need to deal with. The force has people who can help, if you need it—places you can go.

Morse: What, um…what do you mean, places I can go? Sir, what are you talking about?

Thursday: Christ. You want me to spell it out? I told you, the drink’s a good servant, but a poor master.

 

By the end of Season Eight, after all he’s been through, Morse finally does the responsible thing. And we just might have reason to expect brighter days for Morse to come. 

 

CLIP

Morse: Sir? I will take those four weeks, if the offer’s still there.

Thursday: As long as you need. 

Morse: Beginning to thaw.

Thursday: The sun always comes up. Just got to hold on for it a bit longer sometimes is all.

 

…but, remember what we said about expecting things with Endeavour.

 

This Sunday, Morse, Thursday, and the old crew get together for one final round of investigations. And as for what happens next…

 

CLIP

Bright: And what of your own future?

Morse: Well, I suppose I’m undecided, sir. I suppose I’d thought things would just go on. But then they don’t.

 

The final season begins Sunday, June 18, 2023, at 9PM Eastern. Support your local PBS station and stream all previous Endeavour episodes with PBS Passport. Visit pbs.org to learn more.