This week’s TV picks
Jason Watkins on the return of Mcdonald & Dodds
As ITV crime drama Mcdonald & Dodds
returns for a second series, there are three new mysteries for the mismatched detective duo to solve in the picturesque city of Bath.
When we first met the feisty and ambitious DCI Lauren Mcdonald (Tala Gouveia), she was unimpressed to find that she had been paired with the unassuming DS Dodds (Jason Watkins). But to her surprise, they proved to be an unexpectedly effective partnership.
‘I love playing DS Dodds,’ says Jason, whose character’s first name is yet to be revealed. ‘He has a gentleness and a naivety to him, but in many ways that’s his strength. I also love that he is completely unaware of his strange quirks, like dipping his chips in butter! I hope to play him for more series to come.’
The first story revolves around a murder on a hot-air balloon ride, with suspicion falling on a group of friends who were all famous in the 1980s. Rupert Graves, Martin Kemp, Patsy Kensit and Cathy Tyson guest star as the suspects, while Rob Brydon appears as a man from the Air Incident Investigation Agency, who assists the police with their enquiries. ‘Rob made us all laugh on set doing Alan Bennett impressions, and there was a lot of gentle ribbing,’ says Jason. ‘It was great seeing Martin Kemp, too, because I was a Spandau Ballet fan back in the 1980s. It was nice to remember a time when I had hair!’
Mcdonald & Dodds is on ITV
‘I hope to play him for more series to come’