Miss Scarlet's Tom Durant-Pritchard teases whether Blake will love Eliza

5th season Miss Scarlett is all about change but a beginner Tom Durant-Pritchard is just like Us looking for Eliza Scarlet to find her happily ever after.

“We all need love, you know what I mean?” Durant-Pritchard, 37, said only Us Weekly playing coy about whether his character, new Inspector Alexander Blake of Scotland Yardwill be a new love interest for private detective Eliza (Kate Phillips).

The actor replaces Stuart Martins Inspector William Wellington aka The Duke in the upcoming season of the PBS Masterpiece Mystery show, which premieres Sunday, January 12th. (Early streaming began December 8, 2024 on the PBS app and on the PBS Masterpiece Prime video channel.)

Unlike William, who had been in love with Eliza for years before starting work in New York at the end of Season 4, Blake doesn't like private detectives. However, this dislike of Eliza's profession could be short-lived, according to Durant-Pritchard.

Related: Miss Scarlett's Tom Durant-Pritchard is asking fans to give a new character a chance

Courtesy of Miss Scarlet Limited and MASTERPIECE The Duke is no longer in the Miss Scarlet cast, but newcomer Tom Durant-Pritchard hopes his character Inspector Alexander Blake can fill the void. “Why should fans give him a chance? I think for a number of reasons,” Durant-Pritchard, 37, exclusively told Us Weekly about his (…)

“Blake doesn't want the PI working with Scotland Yard, but there's such a classic thing about Miss Scarlett that there's no denying she's very good at what she does,” he said. We. “And Blake is a sensible man and is coming to appreciate that as much as he doesn't want Mrs. Scarlet involved in any of the cases, she's too good to ignore.”

He teased: “It's such a shame he has to let her participate.”

While the two clash right out of the gate — their paths cross in a complicated stolen property case in the premiere — Durant-Pritchard explained that they have a few things in common that could bond them.

“He's been through his own heartbreak, which is different than Miss Scarlet,” the Season 5 star shared. “But they find each other when they're in their company. They kind of need each other.”

Durant-Pritchard noted that Blake and Eliza don't want to “settle down” when he first arrives in town, but that changes over the years.

“You're seeing a kind of friendship building. There's something between them that they both don't want to happen,” he teased. “There's a relationship building going on.”

Durant-Pritchard explained that while Eliza wants a clean break from William, fans will see how During the Season 5 premiere, the two formally break up – healing from heartbreak “is never that easy.”

The English actor revealed that Eliza's feelings from Season 4 “will feed into what happens in Season 5.” As for how she'll connect with Blake and get involved in other things, Durant-Pritchard said it will have to be proven on the job.

“There are some great cases that are pretty big that require quite a bit of mental strength,” he shared. “And the bond that Blake and Mrs. Scarlet have to make to solve these things lets the past be the past and they have to start building their relationship and the future between them.”

Durant-Pritchard teased a bit about whether Blake and Eliza's dynamic will turn romantic, but he didn't completely rule it out.

“You can expect two lonely people suffering from heartbreak to go about their business as best they can,” he said. We. “And as much as they don't want to spend time with each other as the season goes on, they get to spend more and more time together and get to know each other better and better.”

While Blake and Eliza begin their journey on a rocky footing, it was easy for Durant-Pritchard to get along with the show's leading lady.

“Kate is a fantastic actor and she's a great person. It's very easy to just hang out and enjoy it,” he said of Phillips, 35. “I've come from having done my fair share of comedies, and we share a love of comedies (and) comedies. work Hugh Grant over the years.”

Related: How did 'Miss Scarlett' explain the Duke's absence in the Season 5 premiere?

Courtesy of MASTERPIECE The Season 5 premiere of Miss Scarlet ushered in a new era for the show — and while Duke didn't return, fans got answers about his whereabouts. Miss Scarlett and the Duke (who is now Miss Scarlett) During season 4, Inspector William Wellington, aka The Duke (Stewart Martin) confirmed (…)

Durant-Pritchard revealed that she and Phillips shared a love of movies and spent a lot of time getting to know each other's ticks. (Durant-Pritchard chose Four weddings and a funerall and “all Bridget Jones” as his favorite rom-coms.)

“I think we talked every day from about eight in the morning until seven at night and spent every second together,” he recalled. “We got along so well that it was very easy on set.”

As fans prepare for a new dynamic in Season 5 Miss ScarlettDurant-Pritchard gave We his vision for Season 6 — assuming Blake sticks around.

“I'd like to see how his relationship with Mrs. Scarlett develops over time,” he said, noting that he, too, is Eliza's team to find love. “I think to see if they can have some kind of working relationship, and then everything that happens is a blessing.”

5th season Miss Scarlett premieres on Masterpiece Mystery on PBS Sunday, January 12 at 8 p.m. ET.