Robson Green's Weekend Escapes: Grantchester star 'incredibly at home' in Northumberland but in 'negotiations' about visit to space

Series two of Weekend Escapes starts on BBC Two at 7pm on Monday, January 1, with the region Robson still calls home set to feature heavily, and the Grantchester and Soldier Soldier star claims there have been “serious negotiations” about a future escape to outer space.

Robson said: “We are trying to push the envelope in some of the locations we go to. Believe it or not, I am having a discussion with someone about going into space.”

He added: “You grow up wanting to be an astronaut, and I did. I studied all the Apollo missions. One of the first memories that I have of television was the Apollo Landing in ‘69.”

In the meantime, the much-loved North East icon maintains there is something about living and filming programmes in Northumberland that has always made him “genuinely happy.”

He said: “The notion of home is an interesting one because it is not a building. It is not the colour of your walls. It is not the carpet, or your garden, or whatever, it is a feeling.

“I feel incredibly at home when I am walking around Northumberland, when I am surrounded by the beauty that it has on offer, and the wildlife and their natural surroundings.

“And, of course, the people. I do believe there is a genuine warmth and kindness that exists in Northumberland that is different from elsewhere.”

The opening episode of the new series sees Robson visit Alnmouth with the star of Inspector Morse, Lewis, and Auf Wiedersehen, Pet, Kevin Whately, as they reminisce about growing up in the North East.

Robson says he has “never had so much recognition or compliments” for his work as with Weekend Escapes, and that the programme is “a labour of love” for him.

Although he has recently returned from filming in the “lush green paradise” of the Amazon rainforest, he still feels Northumberland is a special place to be.

The 59-year-old said: “It is incredibly impressive and it is the greatest ancient ecosystem on the planet, however Northumberland has its own merits that are completely equal to that.”

He added: “I have probably done two thirds of the planet in terms of travelling and I always gravitate to this place because the feeling is an overwhelming sense of well-being.”

After the Sycamore Gap tree, an iconic Northumberland landmark, was felled in September, Robson was left “devastated” and “genuinely upset.”

He said: “I have grown up in Hexham. I have walked to that tree. I have picnicked under that tree. I take my son there.

“It is not just a tree, it is a symbol of hope and beauty for so many people. It means so many things to so many different people from around the world.”

Robson visits Warkworth, Beadnell, Amble, and other remote parts of Northumberland across the new series’ 15 episodes, as well as the attractions across the North East, Cumbria, and Scottish Borders.

The natural setting and detox from the digital world leads to the show’s guest opening up and reminiscing about their childhoods, something Robson said he expected to come up.

In addition to guest celebs like Faye Tozer from Steps, ex-Newcastle United striker Shola Ameobi, and Loose Women’s Denise Welch, Robson takes members of his family along to enjoy some of the sights and experiences showcased in the programme.

Giving back to the people that introduced him to the outdoors was something he found “really wonderful,” as well as having the “real privilege and honour” of the company of inspirational North East legends.

He added that there are plenty more people that he would love to have on the show if only the budget allowed, saying: “Of course we went to Alan Shearer. Of course we went to Ross Noble. Of course we went to all the other iconic North Easterners.

“Brian Johnson from AC/DC, we nearly had him. Of course we want Sam Fender. We would get those people if we had the budget, but sadly they are not cheap.”

There are many talented people from the North East working in film and television, Robson says, but in his view there must be greater investment in the region to keep them making shows in their home region.

He said: “We have the infrastructure, we have the personnel. But those personnel, if they are being offered higher amounts elsewhere, of course they are going to go for that.

“If you want to truly level up, if you want to truly invest in people, then you have to pay the people the right amounts of money.”

For Robson the contrasts of his success as an actor and his reality programmes is a balancing act, but an enjoyable one.

He said: “I managed to get this lovely hybrid within my life where I can fake sincerity and suspend disbelief in drama but be me in front of the lens when I do the factual.

“Being genuinely yourself in front of the lens is a very difficult thing to do, and it only comes from experience and being really at ease with yourself and your environment.

“I do love the balance and it is, for me, real. I am having a genuine break from work when I do Weekend Escapes and it recharges the batteries to do another few months on Grantchester or any other drama I have been asked to do.”

Robson Green’s Weekend Escapes will air at 6.30pm Monday to Friday after episode one, and all episodes will be available to watch on BBC iPlayer from January 1.