Interview with Amelia Bullmore who plays Rachel Liebermann in Vienna Blood on season four

How does it feel to be back with the Liebermann family?

I’m very happy to be back with my family this season. It’s always really good fun. More and more so over the years. We’re very comfortable with each other.

Do you have a favourite location?

It’s great to go back to the Liebermann house. We didn’t think we would go back because we’d understood it had been sold. It’s amazing to come back to the old house. It’s full of memories because you remember things that happened and scenes you shot there. You remember when you were new and when it was all new. It’s like layers and layers of familiarity.

Do you think Rachel as an English, Jewish woman would have felt comfortable in Vienna in 1909 (with an openly antisemitic mayor)?

I think Rachel towards the end of these stories is feeling uneasy. She says so. She wants to feel safe. She wants her family to be safe and not under threat. She’s got an instinct to get back to England.

How does Rachel feel about the dark crimes Oskar and Max bring into the family home?

I think it’s complicated for Rachel. She thinks Max is pretty wonderful but the world he’s got into is pretty dark. I think if she had her way, he’d be in the family business. That’s what would have happened in Rachel’s fantasy, and everything would be calm. But he’s in this darker, more complicated world and she goes with it. Rachel likes Oskar. She knows Oskar is Max’s friend. But every time he turns up, she knows it means trouble.

What risks do you think Rachel considers worthwhile, if any? And what’s too dangerous?

I think Rachel would risk anything for her family. I don’t know what her limits would be but if her family was under threat, I think she would really be ruthless. I think that’s an area where she would be a ‘she wolf’, with her family. I don’t think she’s daring in other ways. I believe she’s conventional, has a great sense of propriety and likes people to behave well.

Who’s prepared to take bigger risks Ameila Bullmore or Rachel Liebermann?

I think I’m more prepared to take risks than Rachel. But that’s not saying much. It’s not like I’m a big risk taker but she really isn’t a risk taker. By the yardstick of Rachel or me, it’s got to be me!

The fourth series of gripping crime drama Vienna Blood (2 x 90’) – written by acclaimed screenwriter Steve Thompson (Sherlock, Prime Target, Deep State,) and based on the bestselling Liebermann novels by Frank Tallis – will air on BBC iPlayer and BBC Two.

Filmed in English and on location in Vienna, series four is directed by Umut Dağ (House of Promises, Breaking Point) with Matthew Beard (The Imitation Game, Dracula, Magpie Murders) and Juergen Maurer (Vorstadtweiber, Tatort) reprising their roles as crime-fighting duo Doctor Max Liebermann and Detective Inspector Oskar Rheinhardt.

The fourth series, unlike the previous three series, features a single story – entitled Mephisto Waltz – told over two mysterious and thrilling episodes.

It’s Vienna, 1909 and the double murder of an arms dealer in police custody and a senior public official has shaken Vienna to its core. Doctor Max Liebermann has only just returned from a lecture tour when Inspector Rheinhardt asks for help in what could be the most dangerous case of their career. Oskar and Max discover a conspiracy that leads to the heart of government. Can the Freudian psychoanalyst and detective do enough to stop a seditious mole known as ‘Mephisto’ from bringing the Austro-Hungarian Empire to destruction? And will their lives ever be the same again?

Sue Deeks, BBC Head of Programme Acquisition, says: “This is such an exciting event – a Vienna Blood case so big it needs to be told over two thrilling episodes. What a treat we have in store!”

Carlo Dusi, Managing Director of Endor Productions, says: “We could not be more proud of this special new season that we have produced with our friends at MR and brings a thrilling new storyline with the highest of stakes to fans of Vienna Blood. There truly could be no better showcase for the combined talents of our wonderful writer Steve Thompson, brilliant director Umut Dag and incredibly talented cast and crew, led as ever by the unique pairing of Matthew Beard and Juergen Maurer. It has been an honour and a pleasure to work again with our partners at ORF, ZDF, BBC, PBS and Red Arrow Studios International in bringing the luminous characters and world originally created in Frank Tallis’s Liebermann Diaries to the screen, and we are sure that audiences will not be disappointed.”

Oliver Auspitz and Andreas Kamm of MR Film add: “We can’t wait to bring this very special season of Vienna Blood to a worldwide audience. Having one case spanning two episodes will push Max and Oskar to limits never seen before. Thanks to our trusted partners Endor Productions, Red Arrow Studios International, ORF and ZDF. With the support of Austria’s rebate system FISAplus, Television Fund Austria and TV-Filmfund Vienna and all the creatives involved we’re delighted to continue this (hi)story!”

Rodrigo Herrera Ibarguengoytia, VP Scripted Acquisitions & Co-Productions, Red Arrow Studios International, comments: “We are thrilled to return to early 1900s Vienna for Max Liebermann and Oskar Rheinhardt’s most ambitious and consequential case yet. Vienna Blood has been a hit around the world, from the UK to the US and from Austria to Australia and we cannot wait to bring this compelling new season to global broadcasters and their audiences.”

The producers of Vienna Blood are Jez Swimer for Endor; Oliver Auspitz, Andreas Kamm and Catrin Strasser for MR Film; commissioning editors are Klaus Lintschinger and Kerstin Bertsch for ORF and Wolfgang Feindt for ZDF; executive producers are Steve Thompson; Carlo Dusi for Endor; Rodrigo Herrera Ibarguengoytia for Red Arrow Studios International and Hilary Bevan Jones.

Other funding partners include FISAplus, Film in Austria (ABA), Televisionfund Austria, TV-Filmfund Vienna and Land Niederösterreich.

Red Arrow Studios International will distribute the series globally.

Season 4 of VIENNA BLOOD arrives Sunday, August 4, on BBC iPlayer & BBC Two at 9pm. The series is set to be distributed globally, and previous seasons are currently available on Acorn TV, Prime Video, and Apple TV+.