Inspector Morse to return in TV prequel
4th August 2011
Inspector Morse is to return to UK TV screens next year in a prequel that will shed light on how Colin Dexter's famous detective came to develop a love for classic cars and crosswords.
Morse was previously played on screen by John Thaw, who died in 2002 aged 60, but the new, younger version of the detective will be portrayed by Shaun Evans, who starred in the TV adaptation of Martina Cole's The Take last year.
ITV drama commissioner Laura Mackie said the new episode will be entitled Endeavour, after Morse's first name, and will be filmed in Oxford, like the previous instalments in the series.
'Morse as a young man is a wonderful character that I'm very excited to be playing. My hope is that we can complement what's come before, by telling a great story and telling it well,' Evans added.
The first Inspector Morse adaptation was broadcast in 1987, with John Thaw going on to film a further 32 episodes alongside Kevin Whateley, who now stars in his own Morse spin-off, Lewis.