IS LENNY HENRY UP TO FUNNY BUSINESS ON BROADCHURCH?

Comedian and actor Sir Lenny Henry tells James Rampton why he didn’t have to think twice about accepting a role on Broadchurch.

Sir Lenny Henry admits it did not take him long to reply to an invitation to appear in the third series of the thriller Broadchurch. “I am a huge fan of Broadchurch,” says the actor, who portrays Ed Burnett, the owner of a farm shop in the latest season.

“When the offer came through, I don’t think they even got to the end of ‘Broad-’ they didn’t get to the ‘d’– I just said, ‘Yes, yes whatever it is. Yes!’ And so then I met the director, and we had a philosophical conversation about Broadchurch and the kind of bloke Ed is and how he fitted into the community. It was, for me, a no-brainer. Of course, I want to be in Broadchurch.”

Lenny proceeds to describe his character in Chris Chibnall’s series, in which Detective Inspector Alec Hardy (David Tennant) and Detective Sergeant Ellie Miller (Olivia Colman) investigate the sexual assault of Trish Winterman (Julie Hesmondhalgh) who works at Ed’s shop.

“Ed Burnett is a widower who runs the farm shop and I think he is pretty much the only black guy within a 40-mile radius,” says Lenny, who won a Bafta Special Award last year.

“He (Ed) is short-tempered and irritable, but we don’t know much about him. He has been in the Broadchurch area for the past 10 or so years but, as with all of these seaside places, he is still seen as an outsider.

“He’s loyal to his staff and expects them to be loyal too. He doesn’t take any nonsense from anybody, and he is not scared to stick up for himself. So Ed is very much the man who calls it as he sees it.

“He likes his staff, but he works them pretty hard. He is a good boss, but a strict boss.”

Lenny says he was also drawn to the series because it engages the audience as a community.

The actor, who co-founded Comic Relief in the UK, reflects that, “I am from Dudley which, back in the day, was definitely a community.

“But, you know, anybody who lives on any kind of estate or in a little village will understand and empathise with what Chris Chibnall

is trying to do with Broadchurch.

“It is this idea of telling a story through many eyes and many experiences and many vantage points. I think that’s very clever.”

Fifty-eight-year-old Lenny, who has also starred in The Syndicate and Chef!, continues that, “What is great about Broadchurch is that it is about that community. Yes, there is a central crisis and tragedy, but it is the way the community responds as a group that makes the series different from other shows.

“The community reacts and makes it their business to get involved with what’s going on. It’s very much the show asking the audience, ‘What would you do in this situation?’ Which is why I think it’s fascinating.”

The unusual aspect about making this crime drama is that the cast members don’t know whodunit as they are filming it. Like the rest of the world, they are desperate to find out who the culprit is.

Lenny, who was married to Dawn French for 26 years until divorcing in 2010, is also a comedian who fronted The Lenny Henry Show from 1984 to 2005. But even using his humour could not help wheedle out details about upcoming plots. “With most TV dramas you know what the entire story is before you start filming. “On Broadchurch, so many people, including myself, started without knowing how it ends up, and so there was a real detective vibe going on behind the scenes. “We would be in make-up or costume going, ‘Have you read what happens next? What happens to me? Why am I wearing these trousers? Why is there mud on these trousers?’ “You’re constantly trying to glean information from every member of backstage staff, the caterers, the costume people, the stunt people … you’re just trying to find out what happens next week. “The crew are usually two weeks ahead of the cast. It’s frustrating. There are constant bribes of cake and drinks at the bar being bought for people who might know more than anybody else.”

“The community reacts and makes it their business to get involved with what’s going on. It’s very much the show asking the audience, ‘What would you do in this situation?’” – Lenny Henry