First seen reading an Agatha Christie mystery novel, Sister Boniface (Lorna Watson) proved herself to be a ready complement to a crime-solving Catholic priest (Mark Brown) in Father Brown, though the character only made one guest appearance in the first season of the popular series, currently in its ninth season and now streaming on BritBox.
Jude Tindall wrote the original episode in which she was featured early in his own television writing career; he subsequently created the mystery series Shakespeare & Hathaway: Private Investigators, which is also now streaming on BritBox, and now returns as writer and producer of the new series. Sister Boniface puts a bright and inquisitive face on the crimes that she is tasked to investigate as Science Advisor to DI Sam Gillespie (Max Brown) and newly-arrived DS Felix Livingstone (Jerry Iwu) in Great Slaughter, a bustling village in the lovely and scenic Cotswold district of Gloucestershire, England.
Created by G.K. Chesterton in a series of stories that were first published in 1910, Father Brown is an enduring figure who has served as the inspiration for at least four feature films and multiple television shows. In his most recent incarnation, set in post-war Britain in the 1950s, Father Brown is a bicycle-riding fellow who loves treats yet loves solving mysteries even more, never hesitating to poke his nose into police business, to the consternation of local law enforcement. He also has a strong streak of righteousness and never hesitates to brow-beat or guilt-trip suspects into confessing their crimes.
