Curiouser and Curiouser: Lights, Camera, Action! Filming Endeavor in Oxford

Wednesday, January 23, 2013

Lights, Camera, Action! Filming Endeavor in Oxford

I have become a fan of the television drama “Lewis” which is filmed in Oxford. Lewis is a spin off of the long running Inspector Morris series based on the novels by British author Colin Dexter. What I love about “Lewis” is trying to identify the location of the various scenes in each episode.

Sadly, Lewis is coming to an end soon. The actor Kevin Whately, who plays Lewis, has asked to end the series before long and, in fact, there will be no new episodes filmed in 2013. (To his credit Whately has been involved with the series Morris and then Lewis for 25 years and is ready for a change.) However, there is a new young Inspector Morris production in the works called “Endeavor” and I stumbled onto a film shoot of this new series today in Oxford. They were just wrapping up filming a scene in front of the Radcliffe Camera and the Bodleian Library.

Endeavour is a British-American television detective drama set as a prequel to the Inspector Morse stories. Set in 1965, the series centers around the early career of Endeavour Morse, an Oxford graduate, played by the actor Shaun Evans. Last year's pilot was a success and so they are filming several episodes for this coming year.

I’m glad the tradition of having a TV series that features the beauty of Oxford will continue. I also hope I get to be in a background scene in a future episode of Endeavor. It’s a local badge of honor to be in the background in a scene from Lewis and I know several people who have that distinction. Wish me luck with my quest with Endeavor.

Here’s a taste of Lewis: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U9Gltk04WsU

Trailer for Endeavor: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ISP-ulPNvGc