Robson Green is back on our screens in BBC One’s new crime drama The Northumbria Mysteries, playing a man who lost it all – his money, his wife, and his child – as a result of his gambling.
He plays another cheeky chappie with a twinkle in his eye. This time, Robson portrays Joe Ruby, an ex-con who is trying to better his life and go straight. It’s the perfect role for him, and one his fans will surely love.
It might just sweeten the blow of Grantchester coming to an end in 2027 after 11 series. In fact, the two shows are not dissimilar.
Here’s a deep dive into the life of Robson Green, including his career, wife and personal battles. They read more like a TV script than a TV script!
Liz White and Robson Green lead the cast of The Northumbria Mysteries (Credit: BBC One)
Robson Green plays Joe Ruby in The Northumbria Mysteries
The Northumbria Mysteries is a brand-new detective drama series, set in the “glorious Northumberland countryside”. At the heart of the show is an unlikely crime-solving duo, ex-con Joe Ruby (Robson Green) and Oxford-educated DI Rose O’Connell (Liz White).
While Rose is an intellectual with an ice-cool disposition, Joe has been on the wrong side of the law for much of his life. But he’s now trying to make amends for the wrongs of his past.
Volunteering at a local priory, tending to the grounds, he seeks forgiveness and attempts to start a new life, all under the kind but watchful eye of Father David (Simon Callow).
However, when bodies start to show up, Joe’s links to the underworld make him useful to DI Rose O’Connell… And, so, a new “unlikely duo” is born.
Talking about his character, Robson said: “Joe Ruby is a guy seeking redemption. He’s a gambler and a risk taker and someone who has always been lured into temptation despite having a good heart and wanting to do the right thing. He’s a charmer, but he’s fallible and, through the choices he has made along the way, he has lost everything.”
Robson’s TV career highlights
Robson Green currently plays DI Geordie Keating in Grantchester. But he became famous in the 1980s playing Jimmy Powell in BBC One’s Casualty. He played the cheeky porter from 1989 to 1992.
He went on to star as Dave Tucker in Soldier Soldier, alongside Jerome Flynn’s Paddy Garvey. The pair became quite the double act, and even released several songs together under Simon Cowell’s record label.
Simon was so keen to sign the duo that Robson reportedly threatened legal action to stop The X Factor star from harassing them! Not cool, Simon, not cool!
Robson also played Dave Creegan in Touching Evil, Joe Purvis in Grafters, Colin in Northern Lights, and Rob Scotcher in Waterloo Road.
He joined the cast of Grantchester in 2014. Robson has also won over a new audience with his lifestyle shows, including Robson Green: Extreme Fisherman, Tales from Northumberland, and Robson Green: Walking Coast to Coast.
More recently, Robson has proved he can deliver a good villain in Channel 5 thriller The Game, opposite Jason Watkins.
Robson Green and partner Zoila Short attended the 2019 ITV Palooza! at the Royal Festival Hall (Credit: Splash)
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