Miss Scarlet’s Tom Durant-Pritchard teases whether Blake will romance Eliza
Tom Durant Pritchard as Alexander Blake and Kate Phillips as Eliza Scarlet in ‘Miss Scarlet.’
Sever Zolak; Miss Scarlet Limited and MASTERPIECESeason 5 of Mrs. Scarlet it’s all about change, but newbie Tom Durant-Pritchard is just like us rooting for Eliza Scarlet to find her happily ever after.
“We all need love, you know what I mean?” Durant-Pritchard, 37, told exclusively We weekly as he wonders whether his character, new Scotland Yard Inspector Alexander Blake, will be a new love interest for private detective Eliza (Kate Phillips).
The actor replaces Stuart Martin‘s Inspector William Wellington, aka The Duke, in the upcoming season of the PBS Masterpiece Mystery show, premiering on Sunday, January 12. (Early streaming release began on December 8, 2024, on the PBS App and the PBS Masterpiece Prime Video Channel.)
Unlike William, who was in love with Eliza for years before taking a job in New York City at the end of season 4, Blake is not into private investigators. However, that aversion to Eliza’s profession could be short-lived, according to Durant-Pritchard.
Courtesy of Miss Scarlet Limited and MASTERPIECE The Duke is no longer part of the Miss Scarlet cast, but newcomer Tom Durant-Pritchard is hopeful his character, Inspector Alexander Blake, can fill the void. “Why should fans give him a chance? I think for a number of reasons,” Durant-Pritchard, 37, exclusively told Us Weekly of his […]
“Blake doesn’t want PIs working at Scotland Yard, but the classic thing about Miss Scarlet is that you can’t deny she is very good at her job,” he said. Us. “And Blake is a sensible man and he comes to realize that as much as he doesn’t want Ms. Scarlet to get involved in any of the cases, he’s still too good to ignore.”
He teased, “He must begrudgingly allow her to join in.”
As the two head out the door — in the premiere they cross paths in a sticky case involving stolen goods — Durant-Pritchard explained that they have a few things in common that could bond them.
“He’s been through his own heartbreak that’s different from Miss Scarlet,” the season’s fifth star shared. “But they find each other at a time when they are in their company. They need each other in some way.”
Durant-Pritchard noted that there is a “reluctance” to Blake and Eliza “getting along” when he first comes to town, but that changes as the seasons progress.
“You see a kind of friendship building. There’s something between them, but they both don’t want it to happen,” he teased. “A relationship is being built.”
Durant-Pritchard explained that while Eliza wants a clean break from William — fans will see the two formally part ways in the season 5 premiere — healing from heartbreak “is never that easy.”
The English actor revealed that Eliza’s feelings from season 4 “will contribute to what happens in season 5.” When it comes to how she will connect with Blake and work her way into more cases, Durant-Pritchard said it comes down to proving herself at work.
Kate Phillips as Eliza Scarlet in ‘Miss Scarlet.’
Sever Zolak; Miss Scarlet Limited and MASTERPIECE“There are some great cases that are quite big and require quite a lot of mental strength,” he said. “And the bond that Blake and Ms. Scarlet must form to solve these cases ensures that the past remains in the past and they must begin to build their own relationship and future between them.”
Durant-Pritchard remained somewhat coy about whether Blake and Eliza’s dynamic will turn romantic, but he didn’t rule it out completely.
“You can expect two single people in a state of heartbreak to go about their business as best they can,” he said. Us. “And as much as they don’t want to spend time together as the season progresses, they ultimately have to spend more and more time together and get to know each other better as time goes on.”
While Blake and Eliza get off to a rocky start, Durant-Pritchard easily got along with the show’s leading lady.
“Kate is a fantastic actor, and she’s a wonderful person. It’s very easy to just hang out and have that,” he said of Phillips, 35.” I come from a background where I’ve done quite a bit of comedy, and we share a love of comedy. [and] rom-coms, all the work of Hugh Grant over the years.”
Courtesy of MASTERPIECE The season 5 premiere of Miss Scarlet ushered in a new era for the show — and while The Duke didn’t return, fans did get answers about his whereabouts. During season 4 of Miss Scarlet and the Duke (now Miss Scarlet), Inspector William Wellington, aka The Duke (Stuart Martin), claimed […]
Durant-Pritchard revealed that he and Phillips bonded over their love of movies and spent a lot of time getting to know each other’s characters. (Durant-Pritchard elected Four weddings and a funeralme and “all Bridget Jones’s‘ as his favorite rom-coms.)
“We talked, I think, every day from about eight in the morning until seven at night, and we spent every second together,” he recalls. “We got along so well that it was just very easy on set.”
As fans prepare for new dynamics in season 5 of Mrs. Scarletgave Durant-Pritchard Us his vision for season 6 – assuming Blake sticks around.
“I would like to see how his relationship with Ms. Scarlet develops over time,” he said, hinting that he too is part of the Eliza team looking for love. “To see if they can maintain some kind of working relationship and then anything else that happens will be a blessing, I think.”
Season 5 of Mrs. Scarlet premieres on Masterpiece Mystery on PBS Sunday, January 12 at 8pm ET.
