Shaun Evans Answers Fan Questions: Part II
When devoted Endeavour fans submitted questions for star Shaun Evans, the actor took a break from working on the final season to answer enough questions for not one, but two full parts. Part I centered around his character, Endeavour Morse. In Part II, Evans got more personal, answering questions about his experience playing the complex character over the years, his own connections to Morse, his plans for the future, and more…including that mustache! Discover Evans’ answers and insights, and watch all eight seasons of Endeavour with PBS Passport, an added member benefit.
A couple of viewers had questions about playing Morse, and going to that space, because of his intensity. Carol M. asks, “How do you shake off each season?” And Anne W. asks, “Do you find it challenging to stay in that space?”
Great questions. To take the second one first, I love work and I feel that work’s one of the most important things to me in my life. I feel enormously privileged that I’ve been afforded this luxury of playing this part, to be directing, to be producing, to have an overview of it. So for those five or six months of the year that it takes to make those three episodes, it’s my whole life for that period. That can be intense, and it means that all of the other relationships in my life have to grant me some patience. For those five or six months it gets my full, undivided, focused attention, seven days a week. Because if I’m not prepping for the week, then I’m in the edit suite working on the one that I’ve just directed.
So for those six months, I’m all in, and that’s an incredible thing. It’s not a sacrifice; it’s a real luxury. And so I never really think, “This is what the character is doing now.” It’s not like that—it’s a full-bodied experience, telling the story over those three episodes. I’m trying to have an overview, whilst also having a mind on the very specific scenes that we’re shooting. So, that’s one thing, it demands my full attention.
But then when it’s done, there’s a huge release in being able to go and see my friends and family, and go traveling, and go and see plays and movies and exhibitions. Reconnect with the people that I’ve neglected for those six months. And so it’s a very easy movement between the two.
Many, many viewers who wrote in are fans of the Inspector Morse series and John Thaw’s portrayal of Morse. Of the many Thaw-related questions, here’s one that’s perhaps representative: If there’s one question that you could have asked John Thaw about Morse, and how he played the character, what would that question be?
That’s a really good question, and do you know what? I don’t think I would have. I would love to have hung out with him, because of all of the stories that I hear. It sounds like we’d have a lot in common. But in terms of seeking advice about playing a part, I just don’t think I would’ve. You have to find your own way with things in order for it to mean something to you. Also, whatever his particular way in was, it might not have been any use to me at all. So, I would’ve liked to have known him socially, but I doubt I would’ve asked any questions about the part, to be honest. That’s with all respect, all huge respect to him.
Endeavour’s fans love its Oxford setting and want to know if you have a favorite spot in Oxford, either for yourself or as a filming location.
Yeah, for sure. One is Oxford itself, and the Radcliffe Camera, which is right in the center, this beautiful building in the middle of this cobbled-street town. It’s a real mix of architecture on either side, but it’s a very specific building, which you would only see there. Every time you see exactly that it’s Oxford, so every time I think of Oxford, I think of that. But I also think of the numerous interiors of the colleges, or the dons’ rooms, with their very heavy, dark mahogany wood. The very particular, specific, intellectual atmosphere within those rooms—that’s always Oxford, to me. So, it’s Oxford more generally, rather than a specific favorite location.
Many of our viewers adore your native Liverpool accent and hope to learn more about Morse’s accent vis-a-vis yours and in general.
Well, this is a person from the north, who was educated in Oxford and then lives in Oxford. Obviously, there was a degree of listening that had to be done—it couldn’t be completely different from what John Thaw had done. But also, to be honest, I think he uses language in a way…not as a weapon, but I suppose, as armor. I think he uses language and speech as armor, to keep people away, and sometimes to prove that he’s more intelligent. So, accent and language has been really interesting for me, when I’ve been thinking about it.
And also, it’s a great device as an actor, to just take it away from you, so that you’re always reaching for it, hopefully never dragging it towards it being more like me. But rather, reaching out, and trying to create something which is separate from me.
Looking back, Kathy B. wants to know, “Out of all the seasons of Endeavour, what hairstyle and wardrobe did you like best?”
I liked the boldness of the one where I had the mustache. [Laughs] Yeah, and even when I look back, I think that’s a bold choice. I like that one. And to have continued it for the whole season! What I love is that it was never mentioned. I mean, no one goes, “Dude, what’s that on your lip?” You just ride with it. That was one of my favorite ones.
With the end of Endeavour approaching, Carol V. asks, “What will you miss the most?”
That’s another great question. There are a number of things that I will miss. I will miss not seeing my fellow actors and crew for certain every year. That being said, I think we all knew that it’s been such a lovely run, and we’ve all been very grateful for the amount of time we have spent together. We have made the decision collectively to call it a day, that it’s the right farewell at the right time. So, whilst it is sad, I think we’re all ready for new adventures. You want to leave while it’s still popular—you don’t want to leave when it’s begun to get stale, and people have lost interest. So, I will miss the people.
And also, I think they’re fewer and far between, the stories where you can really engage yourself…all of the folks from literature, the opera music that I learn about each year, the classical music, and the learning, that’s one thing. But then also I’ll miss the full-bodied nature of playing the part, being a director, being executive producer, being over the whole story, having a real say about how the story is both evolving and developing—that’s been a real blessing. So I’ll miss that, I think, as I move on to different projects.
Jane L. asked, “When it’s all over, and broadcast, and you’ve moved on, do you think you’ll watch the original series?”
You know what? I don’t know. I recently started reading the [Inspector Morse] books again, and started to listen to [Morse author and Endeavour creator] Colin Dexter’s interviews. Obviously, Colin’s passed away now, and I found it very sad and quite a moving experience. And so I don’t know. Maybe in a couple of years’ time. I think it’d make me feel sad, to be honest with you. I think I’d sooner just go out the back door now, and not think about it for a few years, and let it settle. I feel very grateful and, to be honest, very proud both of our work, but also, being part of this, ultimately, huge body of work, which is beyond me as well. I feel very grateful and proud of that. And it sits there next to me, but I don’t need to keep jumping in and out of it.
Looking back, given all your experiences in portraying Morse, directing episodes, producing, and working with these amazing actors, what stands out as the most significant learning experience or experiences that will guide you in your career going forward?
The first thing that pops into my mind is there are a number of answers to this question, actually. When I first began to direct and I would sit in the edit room, I began to understand the economy of a simple gesture—the economy of a simple gesture as an actor, but also, as a director. How within limitations, you can be really expressive, and it’s very freeing. So, as an actor, to know that you can do something very minimal, and it will be read, but then also as a director, to know exactly what every setup is about. Every time I place the cameras somewhere, to know exactly what this moment is about in furthering the story. So, you get to learn different parts of how to be, hopefully, a better storyteller. That’s one thing that I really learned, which I’m very pleased and delighted with.
Then the second thing is that you are always a collaborator, no matter what I think about the part, no matter what I think about the story that I’ve directed, I am only a small part of the team—the team being the rest of the producers, Mammoth, the production company, you all at PBS, the people at ITV, and ultimately, the audience as well. That I’ve been afforded the luxury of getting to see it from very different and very specific points of view. But you are always part of a team, and sometimes people have better ideas, and that’s a really great thing too. When you trust the people you’re working with and their intelligence. So going back to the previous question, in a way, that’s what I’ll miss: knowing that I can really trust these guys and their intelligence and their storytelling kudos. That’s been a real learning curve over the past ten years, and to sharpen my own skills with those people has been an enormous privilege.
Mary W. asks our last question: “What will be your next endeavor?”
Well, I’ve got a few stories that I’d like to tell, that I’ve been developing over the past few years, one of which I’ll be in, another of which, I’ll direct. But we haven’t got across the line with both of those things yet…so I’m not looking to say too much about that…For me, I want to just keep developing.
I feel like Endeavour‘s been an incredible school in a way, and I want to keep growing both as an actor, as a director, and as a storyteller, but then also, photography’s very important to me, too. I shoot analog photography, and I love being able to think of a project, pick a project, go to a place and make images around whatever that project is. Come back and develop them in my dark room, and then have maybe ten really strong images, which tell a story, and have only really depended upon me to do that. That’s my thing that keeps me sane while I’m waiting for the money for all of the other [projects]. So rest assured, whether the acting continues and the directing continues, and I really, sincerely hope they do, I’ll always be telling stories in my own little way, whatever happens.
