Trivia / Jonathan Creek

• Actor-Inspired Element: A lot of Jonathan Creek's mannerisms, including his rumpled dress sense and duffel coat, came from the producers' impression of Alan Davies during their first meeting.
• Acting for Two:
  • Alice Pattern plays two roles in "Gorgon's Wood"; The niece of a celebrity chef who sweet-talked her uncle into lending a multi-million-pound relic to her mother's museum so they could steal it, and the prostitute she used to "sweeten" the deal.
  • June Whitfield plays twins^note only one of them is identical Heidi and Laurel in "The Curse of the Bronze Lamp".
• Cast the Runner-Up: Quite a few candidates for Jonathan Creek appeared in the series - Rik Mayall later turns up in the series as a police detective who's just as smart as Jonathan, and Bill Bailey as a hapless magician who decidedly isn't.
• I Want You to Meet an Old Friend of Mine: Sheridan Smith's second appearance as Joey reunites her with Paul McGann, with whom she starred in Big Finish Doctor Who audio dramas.
• The Other Darrin: Adam Klaus was played by Anthony Stewart Head in the first episode but he had to drop out owing to his role in Buffy the Vampire Slayer, although his photo appears on Adam Klaus t-shirts and posters throughout Series One. From Series 2 onwards he's played by Stuart Milligan, and appears in pretty much every episode.
• The Other Marty: Hugh Laurie was actually cast at one point before the pilot was filmed, but left the project because of Jonathan's reluctance to solve crimes — Laurie couldn't find the character's motivation for actually following Maddy on her investigations. Somewhat ironic, given that House is something of a Dr. Jerk Jonathan Creek - obsessed with puzzles, not so much with people.
• The Pete Best:
  • Stuart Milligan is considered the definitive Adam Klaus, particularly since Anthony Stewart Head only played him in the pilot episode.
  • A straighter example is Maddy's cameraman boyfriend from the pilot (played by Alistair McGowan) who was intended to become a recurring character, but is never mentioned again.
• What Could Have Been:
  • Nicholas Lyndhurst was the first choice to play Jonathan. He read the script and felt it wasn't for him.
  • Anthony Head's Adam Klaus was meant to be in every episode of the first series, but there were budget issues that required elaborate scenes to be scaled down and superfluous ones to be cut altogether. Klaus' scenes frequently fell under both categories, and hence he was removed entirely.
• You Look Familiar:
  • Nigel Planer plays Shelford in "The Reconstituted Corpse" and Franklin Tartikoff in "The Clue of the Savant's Thumb".
  • John Bird plays D.I. Gallo in "The Three Gamblers" and Horace Greeley in two Season Five episodes.

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