Who should be cast?

The detective’s creator says the character could return as a young man – could an Inbetweener do the job, or another teen with talent? Inspector Morse could to return to ITV in a prequel charting his years as an Oxford University undergraduate . But who should play him? Morse’s creator Colin Dexter is not one to give away too much of the great man’s back story – it felt like forever before we learnt his first name was Endeavour. But we do know that Morse’s time at Oxford spanned a doomed love affair and a lost scholarship which led him to join the army and then the police. And there are a few clues to be had from the short story Dexter wrote for the Daily Mail , on which the prequel will be loosely based. It turns out the young Morse was of “medium height, with a palish, slightly dolichocephalic face, and full light-brown hair, with the merest hint of ginger”. So Morse even had a long face as a young man. It sounds like a recipe for Matt Smith, frankly, although it’s hard to imagine him growing up to look like Morse and he’s a Doctor, not an inspector. The Inbetweeners are about to go to university, and one of them – James Buckley – starred in another TV prequel, Rock and Chips . But he’s not right, and fellow Inbetweener Joe Thomas is more of a Lewis than a Morse. Simon Bird maybe? Possibly. Morse would doubtless approve of Will’s fondness for briefcases, even if his fellow students didn’t . Other possibilities: Being Human star Russell Tovey; Rupert Grint, who would be a wildcard choice (offering so much more than a touch of ginger); and Misfits’ Robert Sheehan is about to have a little bit more time on his hands . But all of them look like also-rans compared with the Morse Jr in waiting – a young man whose face will be instantly familiar to millions of ITV viewers but has shown an uncanny ability to reinvent himself. He share’s Morse’s fondness for music – if not exactly the same genre – and, unlike the detective, is quite a mover on the dancefloor. Plus, he’s about to turn 18 – making him exactly the right age for when Morse turns up at Oxford. Step forward Britain’s Got Talent winner – and star of BBC1′s Waterloo Road – George Sampson! What? A terrible idea, you say? Then who would you cast instead? Crime drama Television Drama John Plunkett guardian.co.uk

Posted by on May 6, 2011. Filed under News, Politics, World News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.