MASTERPIECE Studio
MASTERPIECE
MASTERPIECE Studio is your backstage pass to the PBS series—from Sherlock to Poldark. After the show, turn off the TV and tune in to MASTERPIECE Studio for the scoop with host Jace Lacob. Listen for exclusive interviews with the cast and crew of your favorite shows. Get the history lowdown behind the people and places you see on screen, and hear revealing stories from the set. MASTERPIECE Studio is made possible by Viking Cruises and Raymond James. Sponsors for MASTERPIECE on PBS are Viking Cruises, Raymond James, and The MASTERPIECE Trust.
Episodes
Mentioned books
Aug 21, 2017 • 30min
Endeavour Writer Russell Lewis Already Knows Who Dies Next
*Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode One of Season Four of *Endeavour.
A string of mysterious and seemingly unconnected Oxford murders greets Detective Constable Endeavour Morse in a brand new season of Endeavour. Lead series writer Russell Lewis wakes up every day wondering, “Who am I going to kill today?’ — and he tells us what, and who, to watch for in the upcoming fourth season.
Jul 31, 2017 • 25min
Writer Daisy Coulam Unpacks An Emotional Season Of Grantchester
*Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Seven of Season Three of *Grantchester.
Another season of Grantchester is done and dusted, and lead writer Daisy Coulam has a few thoughts about the emotional journey she took us all on these past seven weeks. She talks love, duty, personal faith and her favorite scenes of the season that was.
Jul 24, 2017 • 29min
Tessa Peake-Jones Is A Smiler; Mrs. Maguire Is Not
*Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Six of Season Three of *Grantchester.
Iconic British actor Tessa Peake-Jones describes herself as a rather happy woman, but her Mrs. Maguire on Grantchester is anything but. She explains how she found her character, how she “listen acts” and what her former acting mentee, Al Weaver is really like on set.
Jul 17, 2017 • 27min
Al Weaver’s Leonard Finch Is Still Learning To Love Himself
*Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Five of Season Three of *Grantchester.
Actor Al Weaver, who plays church curate Leonard Finch in Grantchester, began his time on the series with a rather unfortunate mustache. He tells us about his character’s journey from mustache to near-marriage and beyond, and gives some behind-the-scenes flavor of his funny, friendly relationship with his co-stars.
Jul 12, 2017 • 16min
Bonus: Stefanie Martini Looks Back, And Ahead
*Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Six of *Prime Suspect: Tennison.
The Prime Suspect: Tennison season is over, but Jane Tennison’s journey to Detective Chief Inspector is just beginning. Actor Stefanie Martini reflects on the explosive season finale, the young Jane’s first big case, and the steps that still remain in the WPC’s fledgling career in the Metropolitan Police.
Jul 10, 2017 • 22min
Sam Reid Shows Jane Tennison A Glimpse Of Her Future Self
*Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode Three of *Prime Suspect: Tennison.
Actor Sam Reid plays the grizzled Detective Inspector Len Bradfield, an early mentor for a young Jane Tennison in the new prequel series, Prime Suspect: Tennison. Bradfield is a role all its own — but Reid told us he couldn’t help but sneak a few of the original Jane Tennison’s quirks into his new character as a roadmap for where the future Prime Suspect legend would end up .
Jun 26, 2017 • 21min
Stefanie Martini: A New Kind Of Jane Tennison
*Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode One of *Prime Suspect: Tennison.
The original Prime Suspect brought powerhouse Detective Chief Inspector Jane Tennison to our screens for seven seasons. But Tennison didn’t start at the top. Actor Stefanie Martini -- who plays a younger version of the iconic character in the new prequel series, Prime Suspect: Tennison -- reveals how she found her own unique angle on Tennison.
Jun 19, 2017 • 27min
Writer Daisy Coulam Finds Humor in Grantchester's New Season
Warning: This episode contains spoilers for Episode One of the Third Season of Grantchester.
The comic and dramatic collide in full force in the picture book village of Grantchester, perhaps in this upcoming third season more than ever. Most of that mood comes from lead writer Daisy Coulam, who joins MASTERPIECE Studio to unpack her writing method, the show’s distinctive moral messaging and the secrets of the season yet to come.
May 22, 2017 • 18min
Joanne Froggatt Reveals a Darker Side
*Warning: This episode contains spoilers for *Dark Angel.
Fans of “Downton Abbey’s” Anna Bates were likely spooked by Joanne Froggatt’s character in “Dark Angel”: the manipulative real-life serial killer Mary Ann Cotton. In this episode, MASTERPIECE Studio dissects Mary Ann’s motives, and pulls back the curtain on Joanne Froggatt’s darkest role to date.
May 18, 2017 • 27min
Bonus: Mike Bartlett Rewrites (Future) History
*Warning: This episode contains spoilers for *King Charles III.
In 2012, playwright Mike Bartlett had a revolutionary idea: a Shakespearean drama about a king who had not yet ruled, King Charles III. But the road from first draft to Tony nomination was anything but easy. In this episode, Mike Bartlett joins host Jace Lacob to go behind-the-scenes of his controversial work.
