Latest news with #TheQueen'sGambit
Irish Independent
3 days ago
- Sport
- Irish Independent
Make your next move in Greystones as outdoor chess to open for all
Councillor Stephen Stokes said the sessions are free and offer a welcoming environment for players of all ages and abilities to enjoy the game of chess in the heart of the town. "Chess in the Burnaby Park has become a much loved annual tradition in Greystones,' he said. 'When myself and my mother, Bernadette, started the summer chess sessions in 2022, we did not expect that there would be so much demand for the game. Local chess has also been greatly boosted by the installation of additional chess tables by Wicklow County Council," he added. For newcomers to chess there will be beginner lessons from 10am to 10.30am. This will be the perfect opportunity to learn the basics of chess or for returning players to refresh their knowledge of the rules. All participants are welcome to come and go as they please for casual games until noon. Cllr Stokes also wanted to remind enthusiasts that Greystones railway station is less than a five-minute walk to the chess tables, in case visitors would like to travel from further away, including Bray or Wicklow town. "Chess is more than just a game, it brings people together, encourages strategic thinking, and makes great use of our public spaces. I am delighted to see it return this summer. I invite everyone to join in, whether you are a regular player or just curious to learn." Chess has undergone a boom in recent years. During Covid, chess moved online. Netflix also had a hit show, The Queen's Gambit which fuelled further interest. Cllr Stokes believes that chess is continuing to grow in popularity with it now being incorporated into the Esports World Cup. To assist chess players, boards and pieces will be provided on site throughout the summer sessions. However participants are encouraged to bring their own chair as seating is limited. The event is free and open to all, with no need to book in advance. The location is the southwest corner of the Burnaby Park, Greystones.
News18
4 days ago
- Entertainment
- News18
Celebrating Chess: The Ancient Indian Game Thriving In The Digital Era
The global success of the Netflix series The Queen's Gambit, coupled with the rapid growth of chess streamers on platforms like Twitch, and YouTube, has propelled chess into mainstream pop culture. Tournament series such as PogChamps, launched by in 2020, introduced chess to millions by featuring popular streamers and celebrities, each mentored by elite Grandmasters. Leading streaming personalities like Levy Rozman, known as GothamChess, and the Botez sisters, Alexandra and Andrea, have built massive followings on both Twitch and YouTube. Their accessible, educational, and entertaining style has made chess more engaging and relatable to younger audiences. Since then, online chess has seen explosive growth. In 2024 alone, recorded over 7.6 billion games played. The platform has surpassed 200 million registered users globally, with India contributing over 9 million monthly active players and adding an average of 550,000 new signups each month. Beyond gameplay, viewership numbers have soared, with chess amassing 925 million organic views this year, reflecting an incredible 640 percent year-on-year growth. With its easy-to-play format and accessibility anytime, anywhere, chess has cemented itself as a universal sport for the digital generation. This digital success naturally extended into the competitive esports world. The chess esports revolution accelerated in 2020 when world-renowned Grandmasters such as Qiyu Zhou, Hikaru Nakamura, and Andrew Tang joined established esports organizations like Counter Logic Gaming, Team SoloMid (TSM), and Cloud9 respectively, blending the traditions of chess with the excitement of competitive gaming. The momentum continued when the International Chess Federation (FIDE) and included chess in the inaugural Olympic Esports Week in 2023 in Singapore. This evolution reached a landmark moment with chess officially becoming part of the prestigious Esports World Cup (EWC) 2025 in Riyadh, with Norwegian legend Magnus Carlsen serving as the tournament's ambassador. Organized in partnership with this year's EWC features a prize pool of $1.5 million, bringing together the world's top chess players to compete in the fast-paced 10+0 rapid format, while representing leading esports organizations from across the globe. Indian chess is making its presence felt on this grand stage. Grandmaster Arjun Erigaisi, signed with global esports organization Gen.G, has already secured his place at EWC 2025 through the Champions Chess Tour. The final four spots will be decided through the Last Chance Qualifier from July 24 to 26, where top Indian players, including Grandmasters Nihal Sarin and Aravindh Chithambaram, will compete. Both Nihal and Aravindh have joined S8UL, a global powerhouse in esports and gaming content, to compete at EWC 2025. S8UL is the only Indian organization selected among the 40 elite global teams in the Esports World Cup Foundation's (EWCF) Club Partner Program. The organisation has earned its place to compete among the world's best in Apex Legends and EAFC, and will also be fighting for qualification in Tekken 8 through the Last Chance Qualifier, further expanding its presence across multiple esports titles. 'It's incredible to watch chess evolve from a quiet, traditional sport into a bold, global movement," said Sarin. 'Being part of S8UL has introduced me to the world of esports and content creation, opening up new ways to connect with people. Today, chess isn't just about strategy, it's about storytelling, culture, and community," the GM continued. 'I'm proud to be part of this exciting shift, as the game steps into a whole new era." Advertisement The chess esports revolution in India is also being championed by NODWIN Gaming, a leader in South Asia's esports and gaming ecosystem. The company recently announced a strategic partnership with and ChessBase India aimed at building the future of chess esports in the country. This collaboration has already delivered remarkable success, most notably with the exclusive streaming of the recent World Chess Championship, where India's Gukesh Dommaraju defeated Ding Liren to become the World Chess Champion. The event garnered over 24 million views, with peak concurrent viewership reaching 200,000. Co-founder and MD of NODWIN Gaming, Akshat Rathee, opined that 'The rise of online chess shows how even the most traditional games can reinvent themselves in a digital-first world. Chess has always stood for intellect and discipline, but with streaming, new formats, and structured esports competitions, it's now more accessible and entertaining than ever, especially for younger audiences." Over the years, NODWIN Gaming has consistently driven the mainstream growth of chess through innovative initiatives. The Chess Super League in 2021 brought together a unique mix of top international Grandmasters, leading Indian Grandmasters, International Masters, and promising junior players, offering fans a fresh, competitive, and entertaining viewing experience. Chess has also featured prominently at DreamHack Hyderabad, India's largest gaming festival, further reinforcing its place within the broader gaming and esports ecosystem. advetisement
Sky News AU
15-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Sky News AU
Australian chess prodigy Reyaansh Chakrabarty talks grandmaster ambitions
For 11-year-old chess prodigy Reyaansh Chakrabarty, the hit Netflix show The Queen's Gambit sparked a love for the game that now takes him around the world on a quest to become Australia's first world champion. 'During the pandemic, I watched it a little bit, it's one of the things that got me interested in chess,' he told NewsWire this week in an exclusive interview. 'I didn't really know what chess was but I found it quite amusing, the pieces. 'She (Beth Harmon) is like looking up on the ceiling and watching the pieces move.' Like the fictional hero of the smash-hit show, Reyaansh imagines chess games in his head. 'I see pieces kind of everywhere,' he said. Reyaansh, from western Sydney, is a FIDE master with a classical rating of 2346 and his sharp rise has the Australian chess world excited. 'He is showing a lot of promise at a young age,' Australian Chess Federation publicity director Paul Power told NewsWire. The next level is international master, which generally means a rating of 2400 and three 'norms' or performance benchmarks a player needs to hit to gain the title. And then there is the rarefied world of grandmaster, a huge achievement that takes years of dedicated practice, study and ambition. Australia has only produced 10 grandmasters from a global field of about 2000. 'It's hard to predict that he is necessarily going to become a grandmaster, but he is certainly going about it the right way,' Mr Power said. 'Should he get to the GM title, Australia would be very pleased. It would be a feather in the cap, not just for Reyaansh and his family but for Australia.' Reyaansh's ambitions go even further and he dreams about becoming world champion. 'It's a huge call but right now I'm focused on improving step-by-step,' he said. It's an ambition that might seem extraordinary for an 11-year-old, but chess is a young person's game. The world champion is 18-year-old Indian wonder Gukesh Dommaraju, who ascended the throne in 2024 after beating Chinese GM Ding Liren in Singapore. Before Gukesh, the title was held by Norwegian legend Magnus Carlsen, widely credited as one of the greatest players in history alongside Garry Kasparov and controversial American icon Bobby Fischer. Mr Carlson became world champion at the age of 22. Reyaansh, a year 6 student at Strathfield South in Sydney's inner west, trains about five hours a day during the week, one hour before school and then four hours in the afternoon, and then for eight hours on Saturdays and Sundays. 'My school is very supportive of my chess, so I don't have much homework to do,' he said. 'But of course you still have to go to school and complete whatever you have to do.' He practises tactics and openings, or the first few moves in chess that dictate the development of a game, and constantly analyses his games looking for errors. Reyaansh also studies with Polish grandmaster Jacek Stopa through the Sydney Chess Academy, with face-to-face classes. 'He teaches me how deeply you need to prepare to get to the GM level,' he said. 'At the end of the class I'm very tired. The puzzles he gives me are very tough, like grandmaster level.' For black, Reyaansh loves the Caro-Kann and Queen's Gambit Declined defences. For white, he loves the Italian and Ruy Lopez openings. Russian champion Boris Spassky and Mr Fischer are his favourite players. 'I think he (Spassky) was very strong but also a nice guy. Bobby Fischer because he was a genius, one of the best players to ever live.' Reyaansh was born in Kolkata in India and immigrated to Australia at the age of two with his parents Sounak and Tapasri, both of whom support his chess dreams. Reyaansh has already beaten GMs, including Australian heavyweight Darryl Johansen at a match in Melbourne. 'It was the first GM I defeated,' Reyaansh said. 'It was a good game, it was probably heading towards a draw but he blundered and I won it.' Mr Johansen was gracious in defeat. 'He was a bit disappointed, but we discussed some moves after the game,' Reyaansh said. But there was no time to celebrate. 'I had two games the next day, so I had to kind of forget about it and prepare for the next time.' The youngster, who likes to read JK Rowling and the Dog Man comic books, has also interacted with legends of the game, including former world champion Vishy Anand, whom he met in Singapore. 'It was like a dream come true. He gave me advice on staying patient,' Reyaansh said. He returned to Sydney last week after competing in a tournament in Norway and has travelled to the Czech Republic, Hungary, Belgium, Switzerland and Singapore to play against the best players in the world. When asked what he found really special about chess, he emphasised the intensity of the game and the mental focus it took to win. 'Even if you play perfectly the whole game, if you make one mistake, it's over,' he said. 'You need to focus from start to finish. You can't ever let you guard down.' Chess is in the midst of a popularity boom, triggered in part by The Queen's Gambit and the rising visibility of grandmasters on social media. Netflix claims more than 62 million people watched the show in its first 28 days on the streaming platform. Mr Power has also witnessed a growing number of youngsters trying out the game. 'The enthusiasm of primary level students is refreshing,' he said. For Reyaansh, finding a 'love for the game' is the first step children should take in their own chess pursuits. 'You have to find your love for the game,' he said. 'Otherwise, you'll kind of feel it is a chore. If you don't love it, you'll feel bored with it.'
Perth Now
15-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Perth Now
Is this Aussie 11yo the next world champ?
For 11-year-old chess prodigy Reyaansh Chakrabarty, the hit Netflix show The Queen's Gambit sparked a love for the game that now takes him around the world on a quest to become Australia's first world champion. 'During the pandemic, I watched it a little bit, it's one of the things that got me interested in chess,' he told NewsWire this week in an exclusive interview. 'I didn't really know what chess was but I found it quite amusing, the pieces. 'She (Beth Harmon) is like looking up on the ceiling and watching the pieces move.' Like the fictional hero of the smash-hit show, Reyaansh imagines chess games in his head. 'I see pieces kind of everywhere,' he said. Reyaansh, from western Sydney, is a FIDE master with a classical rating of 2346 and his sharp rise has the Australian chess world excited. 'He is showing a lot of promise at a young age,' Australian Chess Federation publicity director Paul Power told NewsWire. Australian chess prodigy Reyaansh Chakrabarty is a FIDE master and hopes one day to become a grandmaster. Supplied Credit: News Corp Australia He travels the world playing against top players in tournaments. Supplied Credit: News Corp Australia The next level is international master, which generally means a rating of 2400 and three 'norms' or performance benchmarks a player needs to hit to gain the title. And then there is the rarefied world of grandmaster, a huge achievement that takes years of dedicated practice, study and ambition. Australia has only produced 10 grandmasters from a global field of about 2000. 'It's hard to predict that he is necessarily going to become a grandmaster, but he is certainly going about it the right way,' Mr Power said. 'Should he get to the GM title, Australia would be very pleased. It would be a feather in the cap, not just for Reyaansh and his family but for Australia.' Reyaansh's ambitions go even further and he dreams about becoming world champion. 'It's a huge call but right now I'm focused on improving step-by-step,' he said. He was inspired to take up chess after watching the hit Netflix show The Queen's Gambit. Supplied Credit: Supplied It's an ambition that might seem extraordinary for an 11-year-old, but chess is a young person's game. The world champion is 18-year-old Indian wonder Gukesh Dommaraju, who ascended the throne in 2024 after beating Chinese GM Ding Liren in Singapore. Before Gukesh, the title was held by Norwegian legend Magnus Carlsen, widely credited as one of the greatest players in history alongside Garry Kasparov and controversial American icon Bobby Fischer. Mr Carlson became world champion at the age of 22. Reyaansh, a year 6 student at Strathfield South in Sydney's inner west, trains about five hours a day during the week, one hour before school and then four hours in the afternoon, and then for eight hours on Saturdays and Sundays. 'My school is very supportive of my chess, so I don't have much homework to do,' he said. 'But of course you still have to go to school and complete whatever you have to do.' He practises tactics and openings, or the first few moves in chess that dictate the development of a game, and constantly analyses his games looking for errors. Reyaansh also studies with Polish grandmaster Jacek Stopa through the Sydney Chess Academy, with face-to-face classes. 'He teaches me how deeply you need to prepare to get to the GM level,' he said. 'At the end of the class I'm very tired. The puzzles he gives me are very tough, like grandmaster level.' For black, Reyaansh loves the Caro-Kann and Queen's Gambit Declined defences. For white, he loves the Italian and Ruy Lopez openings. Russian champion Boris Spassky and Mr Fischer are his favourite players. 'I think he (Spassky) was very strong but also a nice guy. Bobby Fischer because he was a genius, one of the best players to ever live.' Reyaansh was born in Kolkata in India and immigrated to Australia at the age of two with his parents Sounak and Tapasri, both of whom support his chess dreams. Reyaansh has already beaten GMs, including Australian heavyweight Darryl Johansen at a match in Melbourne. 'It was the first GM I defeated,' Reyaansh said. 'It was a good game, it was probably heading towards a draw but he blundered and I won it.' Mr Johansen was gracious in defeat. 'He was a bit disappointed, but we discussed some moves after the game,' Reyaansh said. But there was no time to celebrate. 'I had two games the next day, so I had to kind of forget about it and prepare for the next time.' The youngster, who likes to read JK Rowling and the Dog Man comic books, has also interacted with legends of the game, including former world champion Vishy Anand, whom he met in Singapore. 'It was like a dream come true. He gave me advice on staying patient,' Reyaansh said. He returned to Sydney last week after competing in a tournament in Norway and has travelled to the Czech Republic, Hungary, Belgium, Switzerland and Singapore to play against the best players in the world. When asked what he found really special about chess, he emphasised the intensity of the game and the mental focus it took to win. 'Even if you play perfectly the whole game, if you make one mistake, it's over,' he said. Reyaansh meets former world champion Vishy Anand. Supplied Credit: News Corp Australia 'You need to focus from start to finish. You can't ever let you guard down.' Chess is in the midst of a popularity boom, triggered in part by The Queen's Gambit and the rising visibility of grandmasters on social media. Netflix claims more than 62 million people watched the show in its first 28 days on the streaming platform. Mr Power has also witnessed a growing number of youngsters trying out the game. 'The enthusiasm of primary level students is refreshing,' he said. For Reyaansh, finding a 'love for the game' is the first step children should take in their own chess pursuits. 'You have to find your love for the game,' he said. 'Otherwise, you'll kind of feel it is a chore. If you don't love it, you'll feel bored with it.'
The Advertiser
12-06-2025
- Entertainment
- The Advertiser
Good cop or bad cop? In Netflix's new Dept. Q, actor Matthew Goode plays both
Being a leading man? Matthew Goode quite likes it. He's the star of Dept. Q, based on the books by Danish author Jussi Adler-Olsen and set in the cold case division of the Edinburgh police. From The Queen's Gambit showrunner Scott Frank, the nine-part Netflix miniseries stars Goode as a one-man combination of good cop/bad cop. While Detective Chief Inspector Carl Morck is a brilliant investigator, he is equally successful at annoying people - even begrudging respect for his talent quickly turns into intense dislike. Goode has been No. 1 on the call sheet before, but he didn't enjoy it: "It's something I shied away from after the beginning of my career where I was there for a bit and then I had some sort of bad things ... things weren't necessarily positive at that point, after that. And I just went, I just want to be, you know, not the lead any more". Goode acknowledges that actors don't get to choose if a main part is "bestowed" on them and notes that Frank fought to cast him in Dept. Q. The pair first worked together on The Lookout (2007). The English actor portrayed an American thief, a long way from the period dramas he's recently been known for, playing suave Brits in The Crown, Downton Abbey and Freud's Last Session. Goode and Frank talked and teased each other in a recent interview about working together and breaking Goode out of his period drama groove. The conversation has been edited for clarity and brevity. Question: Describe your relationship. GOODE: Father and son. FRANK: Taxing, toxic, troubling. GOODE: Well, he's the genius and I just do what he says, basically. FRANK: I wish. We go way back. We made a film together, the first film I ever directed, in fact. And I was lucky that I had Matthew because he was outstanding and made it easier for me at that point. And I think we both just really know one another and I love this man. I would work with him in everything I ever did, but he's a pain in the ass. GOODE: Well, you know. There has to be some cost! FRANK: He is Carl Morck, in many ways. To know him is to want to strangle him. Does that sum it up? GOODE: OK, so now you see what I'm working with. This is the second time he's given me a character that I genuinely don't think that many other people would have taken that chance, because I don't really scream Kansas City bank robber (in The Lookout). And I think this is a part that some people would have kind of gone, it's a bit more sort of Tom Hardy-ish, perhaps. But that's what we are, we're actors, but you don't necessarily get to be versatile a lot of the time, so I feel very indebted to you. Q: Did you write with Matthew in mind? FRANK: I had always thought he would be terrific for this, and I didn't know if we would end up doing it together, but from the minute I started thinking about it, doing it here, I really ... I knew he would love it. I think a lot of times people only see actors in one way or a particular way ... they just see the roles they've already played, they're not really paying attention to what else is happening. Q: Dept. Q is not a period drama. GOODE: There you go, that's a prime example, yeah. Q: So is that part of the appeal? GOODE: I mean a career is, for want of a better way of explaining it, is a bit like a river where essentially you can go, there's the main channel in it, but there's eddies and you get caught in certain things and you get cast in certain ways. So you're not really ever particularly in control of it. Certainly unless you have your own production company or you become a massive star where you actually sort of have the keys to Hollywood and then you have a bit more of a sphere of influence and you can dip your toes in different waters. And he had to fight for me a little bit for this one. He had to go bat for me to actually do the part. Q: Have you played a detective before? GOODE: No, this is my first time, I think. I've got a memory like a sieve now; I've got three kids, that's the only thing I really think about. But no, I think this is my first time. FRANK: I don't think you have. GOODE: Only with my wife with some dress up, but that's about it. Q: Carl is not a posh character. GOODE: No because (Frank) transposed it from the original Danish setting, Copenhagen, and it works brilliantly, obviously, in Edinburgh, and it becomes this amazing character. But he made the character English. But we haven't given too much detail yet as to as to his past, which I love the fact, because we're aiming to be able to keep doing this because there's 10 books. AP/AAP Being a leading man? Matthew Goode quite likes it. He's the star of Dept. Q, based on the books by Danish author Jussi Adler-Olsen and set in the cold case division of the Edinburgh police. From The Queen's Gambit showrunner Scott Frank, the nine-part Netflix miniseries stars Goode as a one-man combination of good cop/bad cop. While Detective Chief Inspector Carl Morck is a brilliant investigator, he is equally successful at annoying people - even begrudging respect for his talent quickly turns into intense dislike. Goode has been No. 1 on the call sheet before, but he didn't enjoy it: "It's something I shied away from after the beginning of my career where I was there for a bit and then I had some sort of bad things ... things weren't necessarily positive at that point, after that. And I just went, I just want to be, you know, not the lead any more". Goode acknowledges that actors don't get to choose if a main part is "bestowed" on them and notes that Frank fought to cast him in Dept. Q. The pair first worked together on The Lookout (2007). The English actor portrayed an American thief, a long way from the period dramas he's recently been known for, playing suave Brits in The Crown, Downton Abbey and Freud's Last Session. Goode and Frank talked and teased each other in a recent interview about working together and breaking Goode out of his period drama groove. The conversation has been edited for clarity and brevity. Question: Describe your relationship. GOODE: Father and son. FRANK: Taxing, toxic, troubling. GOODE: Well, he's the genius and I just do what he says, basically. FRANK: I wish. We go way back. We made a film together, the first film I ever directed, in fact. And I was lucky that I had Matthew because he was outstanding and made it easier for me at that point. And I think we both just really know one another and I love this man. I would work with him in everything I ever did, but he's a pain in the ass. GOODE: Well, you know. There has to be some cost! FRANK: He is Carl Morck, in many ways. To know him is to want to strangle him. Does that sum it up? GOODE: OK, so now you see what I'm working with. This is the second time he's given me a character that I genuinely don't think that many other people would have taken that chance, because I don't really scream Kansas City bank robber (in The Lookout). And I think this is a part that some people would have kind of gone, it's a bit more sort of Tom Hardy-ish, perhaps. But that's what we are, we're actors, but you don't necessarily get to be versatile a lot of the time, so I feel very indebted to you. Q: Did you write with Matthew in mind? FRANK: I had always thought he would be terrific for this, and I didn't know if we would end up doing it together, but from the minute I started thinking about it, doing it here, I really ... I knew he would love it. I think a lot of times people only see actors in one way or a particular way ... they just see the roles they've already played, they're not really paying attention to what else is happening. Q: Dept. Q is not a period drama. GOODE: There you go, that's a prime example, yeah. Q: So is that part of the appeal? GOODE: I mean a career is, for want of a better way of explaining it, is a bit like a river where essentially you can go, there's the main channel in it, but there's eddies and you get caught in certain things and you get cast in certain ways. So you're not really ever particularly in control of it. Certainly unless you have your own production company or you become a massive star where you actually sort of have the keys to Hollywood and then you have a bit more of a sphere of influence and you can dip your toes in different waters. And he had to fight for me a little bit for this one. He had to go bat for me to actually do the part. Q: Have you played a detective before? GOODE: No, this is my first time, I think. I've got a memory like a sieve now; I've got three kids, that's the only thing I really think about. But no, I think this is my first time. FRANK: I don't think you have. GOODE: Only with my wife with some dress up, but that's about it. Q: Carl is not a posh character. GOODE: No because (Frank) transposed it from the original Danish setting, Copenhagen, and it works brilliantly, obviously, in Edinburgh, and it becomes this amazing character. But he made the character English. But we haven't given too much detail yet as to as to his past, which I love the fact, because we're aiming to be able to keep doing this because there's 10 books. AP/AAP Being a leading man? Matthew Goode quite likes it. He's the star of Dept. Q, based on the books by Danish author Jussi Adler-Olsen and set in the cold case division of the Edinburgh police. From The Queen's Gambit showrunner Scott Frank, the nine-part Netflix miniseries stars Goode as a one-man combination of good cop/bad cop. While Detective Chief Inspector Carl Morck is a brilliant investigator, he is equally successful at annoying people - even begrudging respect for his talent quickly turns into intense dislike. Goode has been No. 1 on the call sheet before, but he didn't enjoy it: "It's something I shied away from after the beginning of my career where I was there for a bit and then I had some sort of bad things ... things weren't necessarily positive at that point, after that. And I just went, I just want to be, you know, not the lead any more". Goode acknowledges that actors don't get to choose if a main part is "bestowed" on them and notes that Frank fought to cast him in Dept. Q. The pair first worked together on The Lookout (2007). The English actor portrayed an American thief, a long way from the period dramas he's recently been known for, playing suave Brits in The Crown, Downton Abbey and Freud's Last Session. Goode and Frank talked and teased each other in a recent interview about working together and breaking Goode out of his period drama groove. The conversation has been edited for clarity and brevity. Question: Describe your relationship. GOODE: Father and son. FRANK: Taxing, toxic, troubling. GOODE: Well, he's the genius and I just do what he says, basically. FRANK: I wish. We go way back. We made a film together, the first film I ever directed, in fact. And I was lucky that I had Matthew because he was outstanding and made it easier for me at that point. And I think we both just really know one another and I love this man. I would work with him in everything I ever did, but he's a pain in the ass. GOODE: Well, you know. There has to be some cost! FRANK: He is Carl Morck, in many ways. To know him is to want to strangle him. Does that sum it up? GOODE: OK, so now you see what I'm working with. This is the second time he's given me a character that I genuinely don't think that many other people would have taken that chance, because I don't really scream Kansas City bank robber (in The Lookout). And I think this is a part that some people would have kind of gone, it's a bit more sort of Tom Hardy-ish, perhaps. But that's what we are, we're actors, but you don't necessarily get to be versatile a lot of the time, so I feel very indebted to you. Q: Did you write with Matthew in mind? FRANK: I had always thought he would be terrific for this, and I didn't know if we would end up doing it together, but from the minute I started thinking about it, doing it here, I really ... I knew he would love it. I think a lot of times people only see actors in one way or a particular way ... they just see the roles they've already played, they're not really paying attention to what else is happening. Q: Dept. Q is not a period drama. GOODE: There you go, that's a prime example, yeah. Q: So is that part of the appeal? GOODE: I mean a career is, for want of a better way of explaining it, is a bit like a river where essentially you can go, there's the main channel in it, but there's eddies and you get caught in certain things and you get cast in certain ways. So you're not really ever particularly in control of it. Certainly unless you have your own production company or you become a massive star where you actually sort of have the keys to Hollywood and then you have a bit more of a sphere of influence and you can dip your toes in different waters. And he had to fight for me a little bit for this one. He had to go bat for me to actually do the part. Q: Have you played a detective before? GOODE: No, this is my first time, I think. I've got a memory like a sieve now; I've got three kids, that's the only thing I really think about. But no, I think this is my first time. FRANK: I don't think you have. GOODE: Only with my wife with some dress up, but that's about it. Q: Carl is not a posh character. GOODE: No because (Frank) transposed it from the original Danish setting, Copenhagen, and it works brilliantly, obviously, in Edinburgh, and it becomes this amazing character. But he made the character English. But we haven't given too much detail yet as to as to his past, which I love the fact, because we're aiming to be able to keep doing this because there's 10 books. AP/AAP Being a leading man? Matthew Goode quite likes it. He's the star of Dept. Q, based on the books by Danish author Jussi Adler-Olsen and set in the cold case division of the Edinburgh police. From The Queen's Gambit showrunner Scott Frank, the nine-part Netflix miniseries stars Goode as a one-man combination of good cop/bad cop. While Detective Chief Inspector Carl Morck is a brilliant investigator, he is equally successful at annoying people - even begrudging respect for his talent quickly turns into intense dislike. Goode has been No. 1 on the call sheet before, but he didn't enjoy it: "It's something I shied away from after the beginning of my career where I was there for a bit and then I had some sort of bad things ... things weren't necessarily positive at that point, after that. And I just went, I just want to be, you know, not the lead any more". Goode acknowledges that actors don't get to choose if a main part is "bestowed" on them and notes that Frank fought to cast him in Dept. Q. The pair first worked together on The Lookout (2007). The English actor portrayed an American thief, a long way from the period dramas he's recently been known for, playing suave Brits in The Crown, Downton Abbey and Freud's Last Session. Goode and Frank talked and teased each other in a recent interview about working together and breaking Goode out of his period drama groove. The conversation has been edited for clarity and brevity. Question: Describe your relationship. GOODE: Father and son. FRANK: Taxing, toxic, troubling. GOODE: Well, he's the genius and I just do what he says, basically. FRANK: I wish. We go way back. We made a film together, the first film I ever directed, in fact. And I was lucky that I had Matthew because he was outstanding and made it easier for me at that point. And I think we both just really know one another and I love this man. I would work with him in everything I ever did, but he's a pain in the ass. GOODE: Well, you know. There has to be some cost! FRANK: He is Carl Morck, in many ways. To know him is to want to strangle him. Does that sum it up? GOODE: OK, so now you see what I'm working with. This is the second time he's given me a character that I genuinely don't think that many other people would have taken that chance, because I don't really scream Kansas City bank robber (in The Lookout). And I think this is a part that some people would have kind of gone, it's a bit more sort of Tom Hardy-ish, perhaps. But that's what we are, we're actors, but you don't necessarily get to be versatile a lot of the time, so I feel very indebted to you. Q: Did you write with Matthew in mind? FRANK: I had always thought he would be terrific for this, and I didn't know if we would end up doing it together, but from the minute I started thinking about it, doing it here, I really ... I knew he would love it. I think a lot of times people only see actors in one way or a particular way ... they just see the roles they've already played, they're not really paying attention to what else is happening. Q: Dept. Q is not a period drama. GOODE: There you go, that's a prime example, yeah. Q: So is that part of the appeal? GOODE: I mean a career is, for want of a better way of explaining it, is a bit like a river where essentially you can go, there's the main channel in it, but there's eddies and you get caught in certain things and you get cast in certain ways. So you're not really ever particularly in control of it. Certainly unless you have your own production company or you become a massive star where you actually sort of have the keys to Hollywood and then you have a bit more of a sphere of influence and you can dip your toes in different waters. And he had to fight for me a little bit for this one. He had to go bat for me to actually do the part. Q: Have you played a detective before? GOODE: No, this is my first time, I think. I've got a memory like a sieve now; I've got three kids, that's the only thing I really think about. But no, I think this is my first time. FRANK: I don't think you have. GOODE: Only with my wife with some dress up, but that's about it. Q: Carl is not a posh character. GOODE: No because (Frank) transposed it from the original Danish setting, Copenhagen, and it works brilliantly, obviously, in Edinburgh, and it becomes this amazing character. But he made the character English. But we haven't given too much detail yet as to as to his past, which I love the fact, because we're aiming to be able to keep doing this because there's 10 books. AP/AAP
