As Ross Poldark, former Middle-earth dwarf Aidan Turner is set to sizzle. He talks to Gabriel Tate.
Even dressed-down in leather jacket and jeans, luxuriant mane in a tight ponytail, Aidan Turner looks every inch the leading man. He has done ever since his double-breakthrough in 2009 as one of three supernatural housemates in comedy-drama Being Human, and as a caddish Dante Gabriel Rossetti in BBC2's DesperateRomantics. From there, he leapt to another ensemble piece, though on a rather grander scale, playing Kili the dwarf - the one who had eyes for Evangeline Lilly's dwarf Tauriel - in The Hobbit trilogy. But now, finally, he's snagged that elusive lead role.
"If it had happened five, six years ago, I might not have been ready," the 31-year-old concedes. "It's been a slow build-up, but I feel like it's my time."
Aidan Turner in the 2015 BBC remake of Poldark.
And not just any lead role, but one that has been the subject of fervent speculation: the eponymous hero in Poldark, the BBC's new adaptation of Winston Graham's novels of derring-do in 18th-century Cornwall, a modern re-telling of the Beeb's legendary 1970s series.
Ross Poldark was a south-coast Heathcliff: aloof and stubbornly principled, prone to violent outbursts and brooding grumpily over real or imagined slights.
He has his reasons: presumed dead in the American War of Independence after being conscripted for brawling, Poldark returns home to find his father deceased, the family estate in penury and the love of his life betrothed to his cousin.
Still, Turner smoulders magnificently. The softly spoken Dubliner, like any sex symbol worth his salt, looks sheepish and shrugs off the term.
"I don't know." He crosses his arms. "It's a little awkward." Uncrosses them, then rubs his forehead. "When you're doing love scenes, clothes tend to get discarded. You can't really escape that, that's got to be in the show." He squirms a little more, before puffing out his cheeks and smiling broadly.
Aidan Turner in the 2015 BBC remake of Poldark.
He has never seen the original "I had no idea what Poldark was before I received the offer", and recalls gratefully that his predecessor in the role, Robin Ellis, avoided discussing the character while filming a cameo as Reverend Halse in the 2015 version.
Nonetheless, the original casts a long shadow, not least in its blockbusting viewing figures of around 15 million. "I found out they used to have to push mass in Cornwall back by half an hour because people weren't showing up any more. I thought that was incredible," Turner says. "But 40 years is enough time to give it another go. Everyone from my Mum and Dad's generation knew about it, but that kind of pressure is exciting."
Aidan Turner in the 2015 BBC remake of Poldark.
After graduating from a Dublin acting school in 2004, Turner turned to theatre to learn the trade before landing Being Human, a smart riposte to saccharine supernatural franchises such as Twilight, in which he played tormented vampire Mitchell.
It was that performance that brought him to the attention of Peter Jackson, and he still seems dazed by two years of shooting in Middle-earth. "I've got the Kili Lego figure, although I haven't got one of the cast-iron figurines yet. Um. I don't know if 'figurines' is the right word." He looks worried that the full weight of geekdom will descend upon him for his malapropism. This seems unlikely: a CV heavy on fantasy and period drama has banked him plenty of goodwill in that department.
Aidan Turner as Kili Dwarf in The Hobbit movies.
Still, Turner was ready to move on. "I think we all were. Weeks, possibly even months would go by where you wouldn't deliver a single line of dialogue. But I knew this gig [Poldark] was coming up, where I could really let loose."
Who: Aidan Turner What: Poldark, the new period drama series based on the hit 70s drama. Where and when: Prime, Wednesday, 8.30pm
