Photo: CBC
We were joined back on the Popternative show by Allan Hawco to discuss his new police procedural mystery series, Saint-Pierre, which premiered on January 6 on CBC and CBC Gem in Canada. Known for his role as private eye Jack Doyle in the mystery drama series Republic of Doyle (2010-2014), which was also co-created by Hawco, he returns as co-creator and star in Saint-Pierre as Newfoundland Constabulary Inspector Donny “Fitz” Fitzpatrick.
As he digs too deep in a local politician’s nefarious activity, Fitz is exiled to work in Saint-Pierre et Miquelon – the beautiful French Territory in the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Newfoundland. His arrival disrupts the life of Deputy Chief Geneviève “Arch” Archambault, a Parisian transplant who is in Saint-Pierre for her own intriguing reasons. Arch is played by French star Josephine Jobert (Death in Paradise). The two seasoned officers are soon forced to work together in solving unique crimes.
Hawco tells us that Saint-Pierre differs from his past investigative series in several ways, “On the surface, [it looks like] a cop show, Newfoundland adjacent, is it connected in any way to Republic of Doyle? But in many ways, I feel like it really truly is different; there’s a different format. It is more of a procedural, less of a comedy, it has fun elements to it obviously because all of us who make the show have a real sense of humor and like to bring that light vibe to it.”
“But the cases and the structure of each plot is actually quite serious and there’s a real level of weight that comes with that, that I think fans of a procedural genre have come to depend on. So, there’s a little bit of familiarity, something completely different, and then of course there’s the setting that I think is unique and completely different on its own,” Hawco adds.
Watch the full conversation with Allan Hawco below.
A new episode of Saint-Pierre airs Mondays at 9 PM ET (9:30 PM NT) on CBC and can be streamed on CBC Gem.
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