I’m A Celebrity…Get Me Out of Here! star Reverend Richard Coles is going from one career strength to another after it was announced a Harry Potter actor will star in an adaptation of his novel.
It was in the 80s that Richard first came to prominence as a member of the band the Communards alongside Jimmy Somerville.
The pair achieved three UK top ten hits before Richard went on to study theology and was ordained, also balancing his work with broadcasting projects.
Over the years he’s been the host of BBC Radio 4’s Saturday Live programme, is a regular contributor for QI, Would I Lie to You? and Have I Got News for You and has also competed on Celebrity MasterChef, Strictly Come Dancing and most recently on I’m A Celebrity, where he placed third.
If he wasn’t busy enough, Richard is also the author of four fiction novels in the Canon Clement Mysteries series.
Last month it was announced the first – Murder Before Evensong – was being adapted for the screen by Channel 5.
However, it’s now been revealed Harry Potter star Matthew Lewis will be playing the lead character Canon Daniel Clement has remained a mystery up until now.
The novel follows Clement, who is the Rector of Champton, who shares the rectory with his widowed mother Audrey and their two dachshunds.
‘When Daniel announces a plan to install a lavatory in the church, the parish is suddenly (and unexpectedly) divided: as lines are drawn, long-buried secrets come dangerously close to destroying the apparent calm of the village,’ the synopsis for the series teases.
‘And then Anthony Bowness – cousin to Bernard de Floures, patron of Champton – is found dead at the back of the church, stabbed in the neck with a pair of secateurs.
‘As the police move in and the bodies start piling up, Daniel is the only one who can try and keep his fractured community together… and catch a killer.’
Sharing his excitement over being cast in the series, Matthew said: ‘I’m beyond thrilled to be throwing on the old dog collar and diving into the world of Champton so charmingly created by Rev Richard Coles.’
‘I’ve been an admirer of his work for some time and love the characters and stories he’s written. It’s an honour to work with this creative team and have the opportunity to bring the character of Canon Clement to life for fans of the book and new viewers alike.’
Meanwhile Richard said he was ‘beyond excited that Canon Clement and his flock are to be turned into television’, adding he was ‘already planning my cameo appearance’.
The six-part series will be written by Midsomer Murders’ Nick Hicks-Beach and directed by Outlander’s David Moore.
After his first novel was released in 2022, Richard followed it up with A Death in the Parish, Murder at the Monastery and Murder Under the Mistletoe in the past two years.
Murder Before Evensong will air on Channel 5 in 2025.
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