The House In The Woods
George Baker
George Baker
couldn't resist the challenge of playing twins Charlie and Jack
Magwood in MIDSOMER MURDERS: The House in the Woods.
"It was marvellous to be invited to play identical twins. I thought it was
a
terrific role. I've never done it before and I've certainly never had a
fight with myself. The two brothers have a scrap at the end and that was
really good to do. We used a blue screen and it all had to be mapped out
very intricately.
"Charlie and Jack are very different characters. Jack's very casual and
Charlie's a bit snappier, but we didn't make any real changes with make-up.
We didn't have to because their approach to life was very different, so it
worked. That means the scriptwriter had done really rather a good job.
"I have twin daughters myself and although they're not identical, strange
things happen to link them together, like buying each other identical
presents. That's why we made as little difference as possible between Jack
and Charlie."
The house where the brothers lived as children, near Midsomer Newton,
becomes the focus of a police investigation after a couple are murdered
nearby.
Explains George: "Charlie and Jack were evacuated during the war - one
brother loved the country and thrived but the other was a bit of a spiv who
liked a good time. One ended up in prison and we meet them years later when
they're in their 70s and back in Midsomer. As usual, there are lots of
lovely twists.
"I always watch MIDSOMER MURDERS because it's tongue-in-cheek and fun,
without too much violence. But I always wonder where the buses are that ship
in all the victims!"
George, who appeared with series star John Nettles in Robin of Sherwood and
Bergerac, is best known as another TV detective - Chief Inspector Reg
Wexford in The Ruth Rendell Mysteries - a role he played for more than 10
years. "It's great because we lost about 25 Wexford titles to America and
finally ITV has bought them all back and is going to show them on ITV3,
starting in January."
His many other credits include No Job for a Lady, For Queen and Country,
Coast to Coast, The Fenn Street Gang and I, Claudius, and he also appears in
the new series of Spooks as an ex-convict who spies for the Russians.
"I'm also appearing in The Rivals with Stephanie Cole, which opens in Bath
in October. The theatre is celebrating its 200th anniversary with the play
because Richard Sheridan came from Bath and wrote The Rivals there. I'm very
honoured to be part of it."
George, who is also writing his first novel and a new radio play, is married
to his Ruth Rendell co-star Louie Ramsay and lives in Wiltshire.