Father Brown star John Burton opened up to fans who voiced concern over the new offering of the beloved murder mystery show. The Sergeant Goodfellow actor issued a statement after the latest round of press photos showed some cast members missing from the line-up. John reassured viewers the family-friendly will live up to the standard of previous series.
When the new images surfaced of the tenth series of Father Brown, there were fewer familiar faces than normal present.
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The lead actor Mark Williams was in shot but Inspector Mallory (played by Jack Deam) and Emer Kenny (Bunty Windermere) were absent.
This clearly alarmed some fans, who were worried about the future of the crime-solving family favourite.
However, John has tried to quell their panic with a statement released through his social media on Tuesday evening.
Father Brown will return to BBC screens in January 2023 (Image: BBC)
John Burton looked to ease the fears of some fans after images of the new series were released (Image: BBC)
He tweeted: “I wanted to drop you all a quick message about the fabulous series that is – Father Brown.
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“I’ve had lots (and I mean lots) of messages about the new publicity shot which shows certain characters from it, and I thought I’d explain in a bit more detail.
“The show has been tremendously successful for many years and is loved by millions of people from all over the world.”
The murder mystery show is a huge hit across the globe, particularly in Sweden and Norway (Image: BBC)
Strictly Come Dancing champion Tom Chambers is reprising his role as Chief Inspector Sullivan (Image: BBC)
He added: “Occasionally long running shows need to be refreshed due to the artists availability, so it means we do have some absentees this year, with a few long-term artists moving onto other projects for their own career progression.
“This is part of an actor’s life and we must go where the work takes us. Yes, there are some changes – but they are brilliant changes, and I truly believe you will absolutely LOVE the new/returning characters.
“They will grow on you and they have truly breathed new life into the show.
“We welcome back Chief Inspector Sullivan (Tom Chambers) of course, Lady Felicia (Nancy Carroll) and Hercule Flambeau (John Light).”
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John also whetted the appetite for expecting fans and revealed: “We also have one new character (Mrs Devine) and a character who appeared last year (Brenda from the Wayward girls) joining us for the new series.
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The long-awaited new series will hit TV screens on January 6 next year, with an episode appropriately titled The Winds of Change.
Expectant viewers will have waited a year for the murders of Kembleford to be investigated by an array of unique characters.
The BBC hit has run for over ten years and has become a worldwide phenomenon.
Over 230 countries show the drama and it is adored in the United States, Norway and Sweden in particular.
Last year the man in charge of portraying the crime-solving priest told Radio Times his desires for the future of the character.
He said: “I’ll tell you what we haven’t done, we haven’t done anything about where he was in the ’30s, which would be quite interesting.”
Mark added: “In a city probably. Probably in Birmingham.”
Father Brown returns on January 6, 2023 on BBC One