DETECTORISTS won Best Comedy at the Broadcasting Press Guild Awards 2018 for season three of the programme, but writer, director and star of the show Mackenzie Crook has revealed why he won’t be making another series.
The BBC comedy series follows two friends, played by Mackenzie and Toby Jones, who “go in search of their hearts’ desire with a couple of metal detectors”.
The 46-year-old writer called time on the popular series after the season finale late last year.
Mackenzie explained to TV reporter Rory O’Connor: “Yeah, I think it is. I’m sure that’s the right decision because I don’t want it to drag on and get dull.
“By definition it’s sort of a low-key show and just to continue that nothing much happens would eventually get dull.
“So I’m happy to leave it there. But that’s not to say that I’m not going to miss it.”
Actor Mackenzie has worked on hit shows including The Office and had a starring role in Pirates of the Caribbean.
However, his favourite scene to film of all time was in the Detectorists.
He said: “I’m going to pick something from Detectorists again. A dream sequence that I wrote with Lance and Linda Lusardi in it, I was holding in my head for the whole three series but never found a place to put it.
“Filming that, it turned out just the way I wanted it to, so I’m going to pick that.”
On winning the award for Best Comedy after three series on the BBC, Mackenzie said it was “great to get the recognition”.
Mackenzie continued: “It’s wonderful. It’s actually great to hear the news beforehand so you’re not sitting there wondering if you’re going to have to make a speech or not. I know I’ve won the award and got to make a speech so I’m prepared. It’s great.
“It was my project from the beginning. It was my idea so I think it’s the most fulfilling thing I’ve worked on creatively in my whole career. To see it from concept through to getting an award for it is just incredible.
“Absolutely, it’s great to get the recognition. Especially as this is the third series. The third series of something, the interest might usually have started to wane a bit. To be recognised for the third series of something is even more special.”
Mackenzie has just starred in the first series of Jez Butterworth’s Britannia, sporting a radical costume and prosthetic makeup transformation to play Veran.
Discussing the makeover, Mackenzie explained: “That was quite an experience. I loved it. We’re hoping that a second series of that is going to be announced any day.
“It started off at five hours in hair and makeup. They got it down to three and a half to four hours in the end. I did that thirty times. So it’s a lot of hours in the chair!
“But it was also sort of a way to get into character and that slow transformation in front of the mirror was kind of my warm-up. I grew to really like it.”
The Sky Atlantic show filmed all across Europe, with backdrop locations including the Czech Republic and Wales.
Mackenzie explained that filming abroad makes for a better project, saying: “It’s great. I always enjoy it when you’re on a project away from home and you have to relocate and all the cast and crew are living together.
“It makes for a much better community feel. We did that on Detectorists as well. We deliberately placed it far enough away from London that people wouldn’t commute and we all had to relocate for the filming. So yeah, great experience!”
Jez Butterworth confirmed to Express.co.uk at The Olivier Awards last night that series two is half written, so fans of the show can breathe a sigh of relief.
It comes as it was confirmed today that Mackenzie is in the very early stages of developing a contemporary adaptation of Barbara Euphan Todd’s original Worzel Gummidge books as a new TV series for the BBC.
