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Murdoch Mysteries

Link: Murdoch Mysteries’ Yannick Bisson raises a glass to the detective show’s 11th season

From Bill Brownstein of the Montreal Gazette:

Link: Murdoch Mysteries’ Yannick Bisson raises a glass to the detective show’s 11th season
“The big part of that Victorian era, particularly in Canada, was people being more cultured and not being in the colonies and barbaric. It was all about etiquette and being proper and social graces. We have tried to embrace that in the show. There have been hundreds of great actors who have auditioned for our show, but not everybody has been able to impart that period and that sensibility. It does present its challenges.” Continue reading.


 

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Murdoch Mysteries: Simon McNabb on “Merlot Mysteries” and saying goodbye to another character

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Spoiler alert! Do not continue reading until you have watched Season 11, Episode 2, of Murdoch Mysteries, entitled “Merlot Mysteries. 

Monday’s newest episode of Murdoch Mysteries had it all: a gruesome murder (poisoning!) right off the top, humour (Murdoch drunk!), sweet CGI (winery swiping!) and … another character departing the series. But, unlike Constable Jackson—who died in a hail of gunfire—Rebecca James (Mouna Traoré) exited the morgue to begin her own practice in Chatham, Ont. In our second Season 11 exclusive interview with the writing staff at Murdoch Mysteries, we discuss the season so far with writer and co-producer Simon McNabb, who co-wrote the episode with showrunner Peter Mitchell.

You’re going to hear it from the fans. That’s two Murdoch Mysteries in two weeks!
Simon McNabb: It’s going to be interesting to see what the fan reaction is. In Episode 1, even though people love Jackson—he has become a fan favourite in the last few seasons and a fan of the writer’s room—there was so much at stake coming into that episode and people had great fears for who and how many lives could be lost that there was a bit of relief mixed with the disappointment that Jackson is gone. In Episode 2, we’re saying goodbye to Rebecca and I think that might blindside some people and they’ll be surprised to see her walk out of the morgue.

Peter told me last week that Mouna Traoré was leaving because of other projects, and the door was left open for her to return.
Absolutely. It’s something that we’ve talked about and whether or not she comes back this season remains to be seen.

Who is the wine expert in the writer’s room?
Both Peter and I are pretty familiar with wine, with regard to drinking it. We are not experts in terms of knowing the varietals and the regions, so some of it was picked up from other writers in the room and some of it was a crash course in documentaries and reading about the history of wine, especially in the region. I think we learned just enough to skate by.

I love the back and forth between Murdoch and Det. Watts [Daniel Maslany]. Having Murdoch not be an expert in something was refreshing and fun, as was having him defer to Watts.
I love watching those two together. When we first came to the idea of introducing a new detective into the show on a part-time basis last season it was always immediately a concern, ‘How can this character be likable and smart and good and his job and still be different from Murdoch?’ Then it became, ‘How do we use these two distinct personalities and let them bump up against each other and complement each other during the course of a murder investigation?’ We thought it would be a great idea to have something that Watts knows more about than Murdoch, a real rarity. As a teetotaler and devout Catholic, wine seemed to be a no-brainer. Of course, Murdoch knows nothing about the history, details and different varieties of wine. Watts is a blank slate and we could do whatever we wanted. So it was great to have Watts be the expert and have Murdoch catch up.

A few fans have put forth the comment that Watts reminds them of Columbo. Was that the intention?
It certainly wasn’t intentional when we conceived of the character. At the same time, I think it’s something that we noticed as we started filming him. I would say the result of the similarity to Columbo is an amalgamation of the choices that were made by all sorts of people. Some of it was in the writing of the character and some of it was the costume department making him a little ragged, which came a little bit out of the writing. It was a choice. We could have made him a scatter-brained person who is dressed to the nines. And, also, a lot of it came from Daniel. I don’t know how familiar Daniel is with Columbo or Peter Falk, he’s so young he may never have seen it.

With Rebecca leaving and going to Chatham, where does that leave Julia and the morgue?
We’ll have to see. Julia can’t be on her own entirely in the morgue. She still has other responsibilities in her life and other interests in her life in the Suffrage Movement and the asylum, which we don’t explore every week but is a part of her life. As writers, when somebody leaves it’s always the opportunity to do something else. And whether that character will be somebody who is ongoing or just somebody who is there for a week or two, we’ll just have to wait and see.

via GIPHY

Either the CGI budget is bigger this season or it’s cheaper to do it … Murdoch swiping the winery buildings out of the way to see the lay of the land was very impressive and effective.
I think it’s a combination of effects getting cheaper and a spending a little more money to do something special. We came up with that idea in the writer’s room and knew it would be very effective.

Let’s talk about the additions to the writing room this season in Dan Trotta, Natalia Guled and Noelle Girard. What has it been like having three new folks in the room with you?
All three of them have been fantastic and it’s been really exciting for all of us old hands to work with new people and get some fresh voices in. We loved everybody we were working with before, but there hadn’t been a change in the writer’s room in any way in, I believe, five years or four full seasons. To do, sort of, almost half of the writer’s room stepping aside and half stepping in was different and took some figuring out and feeling out of who everybody was and what they were going to bring to the table, but now at this point in the season we’ve been together for six months and feel like we’ve been working together forever.

Got a comment about Monday’s episode? Let me know in the comments section below.

Murdoch Mysteries airs Mondays at 8 p.m. on CBC.

Images courtesy of CBC.

 

 

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Comments and queries for the week of September 29

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The Season 10 cliffhanger ending, and the opening of Season 11 [of Murdoch Mysteries] were very well done. Political corruption has its roots at the very foundation of this country. As for the death of Slugger Jackson, I suppose it was the choice of Kristian Bruun since he wanted to leave the show. But if I had a choice it would have been Higgins. He has been a thorn in my side almost from Day 1. But the break came when he allowed a prisoner he was watching to go out and get killed. All because of his stupidity. Being stupid can only last so long. He isn’t funny, but unfortunately, just reading his lines. Shame about Bruun as he will be missed. I’ve met him on various Murdoch events and found him to be a great guy with a nice personality. I wish him well in his future endeavours. —Paul

A cliffhanger ending to Season 10. A full range of emotions in the season opener as we went from near tears to jumping out of our seats when Crabtree appeared. Sad to see Jackson go and hope to see Kristian Bruun in other roles soon. Murdoch Mysteries is, without doubt, the best production anywhere and so proud it’s Canadian and promoting our accomplished homegrown actors. —Doug

Loved the season opener! So excited that George and Brackenreid are both alive!! Really enjoyed his reaction when Murdoch saw that George was alive and Brackenreid says ‘I didn’t get that kind of greeting,’ and then Julia says, ‘Neither did I!’ LOL. Great storyline to bring it all together from the season ending! Sad that Jackson had to go as we were just starting to really get to know who he was, perhaps he can visit Higgins as a ghost when Higgins does something stupid (as he always does) and tell him to smarten up! Although Higgins drives me crazy, I think we need him just for times when you just have to roll your eyes!! Love the show! —Jandy

Why, oh why wasn’t it Higgins that died instead of Jackson? His character is so irritating and pretty thick to boot! All the best Kristian. Love from Anne, all the way from England.

I agree with Anne. I wish Higgins had died for the same reasons. He acts like a little kid and never wants to do anything. He always argues with George and it gets irritating after awhile. Jackson was a fresh new cast member who should have stayed on the program. Best of luck to you. —Diana

I could not stop laughing when Julia reappeared (again!) dressed as a man. Brilliant. I felt sad believing Crabtree was really dead—he is such an important part of the show—and then relieved of course. And Watts is growing on me. A really brilliant episode all around to tidy up the mess of the Season 10 finale. Kristian was a fine addition but not as essential as the original cast. —Noele

I was almost ready to abandon the show without Crabtree in it! The plot kept us guessing and on the edge of our seats, hoping things would work out favourably. So sorry to lose Constable Jackson (Kristian Bruun), who had more storyline last season, and became more interesting; wishing you continued success in your career. Maybe you can return and haunt Murdoch! Hard to explain why we become so attached to people in the show; perhaps it’s the great acting which makes it seem so real. Looking forward to the rest of the season, but my heart can’t stand too many more cliffhangers!! —Deborah

The series “The Wild Canadian Year” is sensational. The photography is beyond belief. Congratulations to all involved and huge applause to the photographers. —Arlene

Got a question or comment about Canadian TV? Email greg.david@tv-eh.com or on Twitter via @tv_eh.

 

 

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Murdoch Mysteries: Peter Mitchell on the premiere and previews Season 11 storylines

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Spoiler warning: Do not continue reading unless you have watched Monday’s Season 11 episode, “Up from Ashes.”

If you’re still reading, it’s because you have either A) watched Monday’s premiere, or B) you love spoilers. After a Season 10 cliffhanger that saw Doctor Julia, Inspector Brackenreid and Constables Crabtree, Jackson and Higgins all in danger and Detective Murdoch in custody, “Up from Ashes” returned with an emotional thrill ride that not only exonerated Murdoch but collared Councilman Williams, Robert Graham and Chief Constable Davis. Unfortunately, Jackson passed away as a result of his gunshot wounds, leaving Station No. 4 in mourning. (But how great was it to see Hodge has landed back on his feet?)

In the first of our exclusive weekly discussions with the Murdoch Mysteries writing team, showrunner Peter Mitchell—we caught him scouting locations for an upcoming story about a white moose—explains the season premiere and what’s to come in Season 11, including the two-hour holiday special, which explains the Murdoch Takes Vancouver event!

Congratulations on a great season premiere. It was well-written and well-performed. You were able to bring all of the storylines together in an exciting way.
Peter Mitchell: I think we did a nice job. It was economical and worked.

It’s now official: Constable Jackson did not make it out of the church alive. Did Kristian Bruun want to leave Murdoch Mysteries?
When I decided to commit to doing a cliffhanger like that, someone couldn’t make it. It would have been dishonest if everybody was fine. I hadn’t even really decided who it was going to be when I wrote it.

How, then, did you decide who it was going to be?
Fan loyalty, number of years on the show, Kristian had some other opportunities … Daniel Maslany [Detective Watts] has a bigger presence on the show this year, our cast was starting to get large, large, large and I think we served Kristian well and he served us well. There were no hard feelings or anything like that, it’s just what happens.

Fans become so attached to characters and they don’t want to see anyone leave. But I think that becomes boring if you don’t shake things up. 
I think so. And, at the heart of it, this is a drama. Without conflict, without change and without loss … every jeopardy can’t be on just secondary characters. You have to have it happen to your primary characters to have any kind of impact.

Can you go into more detail about Detective Watts’ involvement in Station No. 4 this season?
He’s in at least half of the episodes, he’s kind of a gadabout detective and he comes and he goes. He is semi-permanently stationed in No. 4.

Is that a case of Daniel comes in and your plan was just to have him for a few episodes and then you change your mind because of what life he breathes in Watts?
I think so, yeah. Kristian was like that too. Kristian came in as Slugger Jackson a few years ago and I couldn’t help keeping him in my mind, and we decided to bring him along, much like we did with Lachlan Murdoch; his participation has increased with every season of the show and continues apace this year.

The scene where Murdoch realized Crabtree was really alive and working behind-the-scenes was pretty emotional.
The bromance between those two has been and will continue to be, a key element of our show. It just felt that natural way to play it. William had kind of given up hope on him; he had never really given up hope on Julia, and he kind of expected Brackenreid would be OK. And he saw Crabtree lying there, dead, in the season finale.

Are we going to revisit Murdoch’s house building this season?
We’re constantly riding that line between murder mystery and domestic drama and we have a whole new domestic drama for Murdoch and Ogden this year that is more important than houses.

When I spoke to you last season, you thought Teddy Roosevelt might be back this season. Can you confirm he does?
Well, somebody hunting the moose! [Laughs.]

What about Dr. William Osler?
Yes, he is in the early part of the season.

Helen Keller?
Yes, early part of the season.

Alexander Graham Bell?
Early part of the season.

Our friend Terrence Meyers will be back?
Yes, along with Pendrick. The nosy newspaper reporter we were all beginning to hate is back, and so is the burlesque dancer.

And Colin Mochrie is guest-starring this season as well.
With the number of incidents that have surrounded the Murdochs at their hotel, someone thought it was wise that we get a hotel detective. [Laughs.] He appears in the Helen Keller episode which is, I think, the third episode of the season.

The holiday movie this year is two hours, correct?
Yes, it’s two hours and it’s a slightly different spin on the holiday movie this year. It’s not so much a retelling of a straight-up Christmas story. There is a little extra in it. We’re going to shoot a little bit of it out in Victoria, B.C. We’re actually prepping it as we speak and are just doing the final casting decisions.

So, the west coast of the county is playing into the storyline?
Yeah, there are sort of two independent storylines. ‘Meanwhile, out on the west coast…’ and then, ‘Meanwhile, back in Toronto.’ It will have some elements of Indigenous culture, specifically the Haida. We’re going out to Victoria in nine days to shoot.

At what point did you decide that going west to film was a good idea?
It’s always been a part of this show, and particularly with Christina Jennings, that when we have the opportunity we try to travel the show. We do have fans across the country and it’s an opportunity for the fans to say Hi. In formulating the Christmas movie this year, and in an attempt to not start spinning our wheels, it was a natural part of our growth to say, ‘Let’s get out a map … where do we want to go? Is there a story we can tell here? Yup.’ We were able to come up with a story that has a bit of resonance with Canada being 150.

What did you think of the season premiere? Do you have a message for Kristian Bruun? Are you excited for the holiday movie? Let me know in the comments section below!

Murdoch Mysteries airs Mondays at 8 p.m. on CBC.

 

 

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Murdoch Mysteries

Link: Murdoch Mysteries returns for season 11 after cliffhanger

From Melissa Hank of Canada.com:

Link: Murdoch Mysteries returns for season 11 after cliffhanger
With the action in Murdoch Mysteries’ season finale squeezed in tighter than a size 10 gal in a size six corset, fans have been eagerly awaiting the period drama’s return. And with the episode Up From Ashes, airing Monday on CBC, it’s finally here. Continue reading.

From Bridget Liszewski of The TV Junkies:

Link: Murdoch Mysteries: Tamzin Outhwaite’s Inspector may be able to help Murdoch
“She comes in to temporarily take over from Inspector Brackenreid, who is missing. At the moment there are characters missing, characters feared dead and we don’t really know who is alive or dead. She comes in with her two bosses who are quite unsavoury characters, but she doesn’t know this.” Continue reading.

 

 

 

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