As keen as Mustard
Former Heartbeat star Jason Durr is returning to Yorkshire to tread the boards at various theatres in the stage version of the murder mystery board game Cluedo. Phil Penfold investigates.
IT doesn’t get much better as a start in the acting trade. Out of a prestigious drama school, and straight into the Royal Shakespeare Company. “Luck,” smiles Jason Durr, “sheer luck. The old thing of being in the right place at the right time.” Not only the prestigious RSC, but to be working with one of the leading directors of his time, Trevor Nunn. “He was – still is – one of the greats,” says Burr. “A marvellous man, not one of those directors who just tells you what they want you to do, and that’s it. He listened, thought it through, allowed things to happen organically. It was the same with his colleague, Adrian Noble. It was always a case of ‘How can we do this, and do it collaboratively?’
“I had a very very happy time with the RSC, and it was a phenomenal training for a career. People who you revered from afar – such as Derek Jacobi – were suddenly colleagues but also very open, very honest and considerate human beings, as well as prodigious talents. There was no ‘side’. Even as as a newcomer, a rookie, you were part of a team. Everyone could bring something to the table, and they did, no matter what stock or standing you had within the company. I also worked for Simon Callow, and he was another huge talent.”
Burr is delighted to report that it’s been the same with his current stage show, a tour of Cluedo 2 – The Next Chapter, which is based on the best-selling board game, and directed by Mark Bell. “Mark is a fund of knowledge. He’s been such fun, a real delight. Occasionally, rehearsals can be a real pain, but not this time, everyone enjoyed the whole process.
“There was a lot of collaborative input – if someone had a suggestion to make it even better as an experience for the audience, then we went for it.
“Why Cluedo? Well, it just bowls along with fun, a whodunnit we’ve set in the swinging 60s. There are new suspects, a new house, there’s murder, suspense, great comedy and – here’s the really important bit, it’s for all the family, young or old, which is more than can be said for a lot of things these days.
“In fact, we got the game at Christmas, and we all sat down and played, and it was one of the happiest times of the whole holiday.” He adds with a laugh: “It was also very competitive.” Jason and his wife Kate Charman, the presenter and garden designer, will celebrate 20 years of marriage this year, and they have three children, Blossom, Velvet and Felix.
“The audience can all guess at the identity of the murderer, and find out if they were correct, or not, at the end of the show. Who did the dirty deed – where and with what? Everyone loves a good puzzle, don’t they?” he says.
Burr plays Colonel Mustard, and his leading lady is Strictly 2023 champion Ellie Leach. He likes, he says, “to ring the changes, to discover new fields that offer fresh challenges, and, thinking about it, it’s been quite a while since I was in a full-on comedy”.
He was born in Singapore, where his father was working as an engineer, and the family then moved on to Hong Kong.
“That is where I first became aware of the theatre because a lot of the ex-pats out there used to socialise by putting on plays and productions at a place called the Garrison Theatre. And although they may have been amateurs, there was some pretty good quality stuff put on stage, believe me.
“It looked like something I wanted to do, and when I moved back to the UK later on, I decided that it was. I was lucky enough to get into Lamda, and that’s how it all started.”
Burr’s first television experience came with the sci-fi thriller series Jupiter Moon, in 1990. But he’s still known for two other major series, the 60s-set police drama Heartbeat and Casualty. In the first, he was the rural copper Mike Bradley, and in the second he played clinical nurse manager David Hide.
“It may be a few years back but Heartbeat truly was one of the happiest times of my life. So many great Yorkshire memories – there was the stunning scenery, of course, even if it did seem to rain quite a bit, the amazing warmth of the people in Goathland and the surrounding area, the trips up to Whitby for their amazing fish and chips, and all the wonderful people with whom I was privileged to work – and I’ve still kept in touch with many of them.
“It’s been so sad to know that some are now gone – Bill Maynard was an unstoppable fund of tales and funny stories. But the man I really miss terribly is dear Derek Fowlds, who played Oscar Blaketon. Derek was a rare person, full of compassion, a fine actor, a gentleman, and he always had a twinkle in his eye.
“He was one of those kind men, who made everyone feel at home, a friend to all. And he was not only a good storyteller, with a very dry sense of humour, but also a very sincere listener. I was devastated when I heard of his passing, there wasn’t a cruel bone in that man’s body.”
Burr was a member of the Casualty cast for six “very happy” years. “I left because I thought that I’d done all that I could with the role, and that I had to move on,” he says.
Was one of the reasons that he departed because he had had enough of the blood and the gore? “Well, I have to confess that I am very squeamish, and all that blood on the patients and in puddles on the floor, even if it was fake, used to make me pretty wobbly,” he says.
“I could get my mind around all the medical terms pretty quickly, there were often lots of complicated procedures to discuss – you have to make the audience truly believe that you know what you’re talking about, and not just spouting jargon at them.
“When you’re doing sutures, you have to seem as if you have the skills, and we had experts on hand to advise us. But it was the blood that did it for me. When the shooting for the day was done, my stained scrubs came off pretty quickly, believe me!”
Burr believes that he has been “fortunate with a working balance. I’ve done a lot of stage work, and I’ve been lucky with television as well, it’s good to ring the changes. Appearing in front of a live audience always charges the acting batteries, you know, and every night is different.
“As well as the West End and tours, I’ve also had the opportunity to appear with some great companies in the regions – some of my best memories are of working at what was the West Yorkshire Playhouse, and also at the Crucible, both much-loved and iconic buildings, as well as places where audiences know they are going to get properly entertained, and at a reasonable price.
“It’s not like London, where you have to take out a second mortgage to buy a ticket.”
But he still “gets to as much theatre as I can – it’s just finding the opportunity, of course. After this tour finished, and it’s a long one, I hope that Standing at the Sky’s Edge is still running in London because I really enjoy a good musical, and it’s been highly recommended – another hit direct from the Crucible, of course.”
Cluedo 2 – The Next Chapter, York Theatre Royal, March 12-16; Hull New Theatre, April 9-13; Sheffield Lyceum, May 14-18.