Jud Paynter

Jud Paynter works the grounds at Nampara, more inclined to grumble than labour and never far from a drink. Gruff, superstitious, and quick with a cutting remark, he treats his master's return with wary suspicion, more interested in defending his own comforts than in anyone's grand plans for the estate.

Phil Davis plays him with a growl and a twinkle, turning what could be a stock comic servant into someone genuinely watchable — his grumbling has rhythm, his laziness has logic, and his sourness never curdles into cruelty. He's the show's ballast, keeping its romance and misery honest with a well-timed sneer.