The beloved BBC series Father Brown has returned to screens with a new season, bringing fresh storylines and familiar faces. However, behind the charming village mysteries and warm humor, one cast member has revealed the painful reality behind filming some of the show’s intense scenes.
John Burton, who plays Sergeant Goodfellow, disclosed an incident during the driving sequences with co-star Ruby-May Mathinwood, who portrays Brenda, the Parish Secretary. While filming, John suffered discomfort after an unexpected collision with the windscreen.
“We didn’t film a lot of the driving scenes, but the bits we did turned out great,” he said. “I encouraged Ruby to really ‘go for it’ when she had to hit the brakes hard. What I forgot was that the vintage cars don’t have seatbelts, so when she slammed on the brakes, my head hit the windscreen. We were laughing so much that I didn’t realise how much it hurt until later.”
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Ruby-May Mathinwood also expressed her excitement about Brenda’s new responsibilities and the challenges of driving vintage vehicles on set. Having previously appeared in shows like Death in Paradise and Taboo, she found working with the 1950s cars to be a unique experience.
“I absolutely loved it—it was brilliant! These cars are beautiful, and learning to drive them was fascinating,” Ruby shared. “It was great for Brenda’s character to take on this new role, mastering driving and using it on quick escapes and speeding to crime scenes. There were also some funny moments, especially with Mrs Sullivan and Goodfellow, which made filming really entertaining.”
The series continues to feature Mark Williams as Father Brown, alongside Tom Chambers as Chief Inspector Sullivan and Claudie Blakley as Mrs Devine. Notably, Sorcha Cusack made a special guest appearance in the opening episode, revisiting her role as Mrs Bridgette McCarthy. Other returning guest stars include Nancy Carroll, John Light, Lex Shrapnel, Roger May, and Kieran Hodgson.
This season also welcomes new cast members such as Maureen Lipman, Julia Sawalha, Phil Daniels, Debra Stephenson, Davood Ghadami, Kevin Harvey, George Rainsford, and Timothy Watson.
Episodes of Father Brown are currently available to stream on BBC iPlayer, offering fans a blend of mystery, humor, and heartfelt moments.