Crime time with a capital T
CHLOE ALEXANDROU talks to Ben Miller about his role as the criminologist storming his way through mysteries
BEN Miller has his detective hat on again as he takes to our screens in uniquely clever crime drama Professor T.
“Professor T has it all, intriguing murders, dreaming spires and a cast of unforgettable characters, each with their own fascinating secrets,” says the actor, 55. “You don’t have to be a professor of criminal psychology to know the ITV audience will love it.” If Professor T looks familiar, then perhaps you’re a subscriber to the streaming service BritBox, where it made its debut a few weeks ago. If not, you’re in for a treat.
The show is based on the hit Belgian TV drama of the same name, available on All 4.
Death In Paradise star Ben plays an eccentric but brilliant criminology professor called Jasper Tempest who finds himself roped into becoming a police adviser. Professor Tempest suffers from OCD – a condition Ben has personal experience of – and carries the baggage of a tortured past.
“His OCD is not my OCD,” says Ben, “but I found it weirdly cathartic to play those scenes.”
It’s a point of difference that makes him a valuable contributor to the police force – but not everyone gets him.
In order to cope with his thoughts and feelings, he escapes into surreal fantasies about the people around him, which the viewers witness.
“They allow you to see what’s going on with the professor emotionally.
“It’s a really great device to make you sit up and pay attention while you’re watching the show,” says Ben.
“He’s so strange. There’s something slightly dangerous, unknown and unpredictable about Professor T.
“Sherlock Holmes is a paragon of virtue, but I’m not sure Professor T is.
“He’s so good at putting himself inside the head of a criminal and I think that’s what is slightly untrustworthy about him,” he adds.
One person who does trust the professor is his former student, DS Lisa Donckers (played by Emma Naomi). When a girl is attacked on a Cambridge campus, the detective spots an uncanny link with an assault that occurred years before.
She believes her old professor could help join the dots and, before he knows it, Jasper finds himself unwillingly caught up in the case.
Professor T, ITV, tonight at 9pm