“IT’S very important that Sidney has seen death. That he knows death.

“I remember my father said to me once:

‘I don’t suppose you’ve buried many of your friends?’

“Which is a very shocking sentence.”

Author James Runcie, son of the late Archbishop of Canterbury Robert Runcie, talking about his creation Sidney Chambers.

Grantchester is a new six-part series starting on ITV at 9pm on Monday (October 6).

Starring James Norton as Sidney.

Totally transformed from his no doubt future award-winning role as psychopath Tommy Lee Royce in BBC1’s Happy Valley.