Lights, Camera, Action! Filming Endeavor in Oxford

I have become a fan of the television drama “Lewis” which is filmed in Oxford. Lewis is a spin off of the long running Inspector Morris series based on the novels by British author Colin Dexter.  What I love about “Lewis” is trying to identify the location of the various scenes in each episode.  

Sadly, Lewis is coming to an end soon. The actor Kevin Whately, who plays Lewis, has asked to end the series before long and, in fact, there will be no new episodes filmed in 2013. (To his credit Whately has been involved with the series Morris and then Lewis for 25 years and is ready for a change.)  However, there is a new young Inspector Morris production in the works called “Endeavor” and I stumbled onto a film shoot of this new series today in Oxford.  They were just wrapping up filming a scene in front of the Radcliffe Camera and the Bodleian Library. 

Endeavour is a British-American television detective drama set as a prequel to the Inspector Morse stories.  Set in 1965, the series centers around the early career of Endeavour Morse, an Oxford graduate, played by the actor Shaun Evans.  Last year's pilot was a success and so they are filming several episodes for this coming year.

I’m glad the tradition of having a TV series that features the beauty of Oxford will continue.  I also hope I get to be in a background scene in a future episode of Endeavor.  It’s a local badge of honor to be in the background in a scene from Lewis and I know several people who have that distinction.   Wish me luck with my quest with Endeavor. 

Here’s a taste of Lewis: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U9Gltk04WsU

Trailer for Endeavor: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ISP-ulPNvGc

In front of Hertford College and the Bodleian Library

One of the actors dashing to a trailer

The sound crew packing up

Notice the 1960 car

A snowy day in Oxford

In the Bleak Midwinter -- Signs of Spring

In the bleak midwinter 

Frosty wind made moan 

Earth stood hard as iron

Water like a stone 

Snow had fallen, 

Snow on snow,

 Snow on snow

It is mid-January, the bleakest part of winter here in England. The weather is damp, the days are short, the trees are bare, and yet...small, tender shoots of green dot the garden path.

 In a month daffodils will be blooming. 

In the bleak midwinter, there are signs of Spring!

Christmas Day Flooding and New Year’s Day Views

On Christmas day John, James and I walked over to the Thames.  The river had burst it’s banks for the third time in 3 months.  

Once again the road was impassible, the meadows turned into lakes, and the riverbank and bike path several feet under water.  

Flooding like this is turning into a common occurrence here.  People seem quite used to it -- they just keep calm, dry out, and carry on.

John went to check the river locks.  My wellies weren't high enough to wade through the water.

The grazing meadow is flooded and the sheep were all gone.  Moved to higher pastures, I hope. 

Boxing Day walk on the grounds of Blenheim Palace.

Today, New Year’s Day, Kate, John and I went for a wander on Boar’s Hill, the hill to the Southwest of Oxford.  We found the meadow from which so many postcard photos of Oxford are taken.  It is the best view of the “Dreaming Spires” I have yet encountered.  

 I can tell the days are getting longer because just a week ago, there would not have been enough light to take a photo so late in the afternoon. I’m looking forward to going back on a clear sunny day for more photos.  It truly is a beautiful  meadow with an even more impressive view.  

Happy New Year!