Gillian admits she’d be a terrible detective

X-Files star Gillian Anderson has swapped hunting aliens for hunting serial killers.

And the American actress, best known for playing Agent Dana Scully, is going at it at the double.

She’s one of the big names in Hannibal, which has just started on Sky Living.

Starring Brit Hugh Dancy and Bond villain Mads Mikkelsen, it explores the early relationship between serial killer Hannibal Lecter and the profiler hunting him down.

Gillian’s one of the docs in the acclaimed US series. And she’s on the hunt again in new BBC series The Fall, which starts this week.

She plays a top London detective drafted in to help Northern Ireland cops with a serial killer hunt.

“The local officers are having trouble tracking down who the killer is,” explains Gillian.

“When I first read the script I had a strong sense of who she was.”

But assured though she looks on screen, Gillian admits she’d be a dreadful detective. “I’ve a terrible memory so I’d be an awful investigator,” she laughs.

The series is set in Belfast and Chicago-born Gillian says she was delighted to make the transatlantic switch for filming.

“It shows Belfast in a way that I haven’t seen before,” she adds.

“It is a very beautiful city. It’s a character in the series and its presence is a very strong element.

“That’s different from what you might get if you were shooting in London.”

The Fall, BBC2, Monday at 9pm.