Expect drama, romance and Aidan Turner losing his shirt – just for old time’s sake. The fifth and final series of Poldark returns to BBC One tonight and it’s a new century in Cornwall.
With it comes the promise of a hopeful future, but the past casts a long shadow.
For Aidan Turner, though, this series is a chance to cast his eye back fondly on a drama which saw him catapulted from relative unknown to one of television’s most recognisable faces.
“It has been incredible taking him on this journey,” explained Aidan, who plays smouldering hero Ross Poldark.
“I was watching some clips of scenes from series one and one of them was when Eleanor was singing in the parlour and we all look so young.
“It is when I reflect on moments like those that all the emotions come in and it makes me think about how much Ross has grown and how much I have grown and learned and what these characters have been through.
“It is especially funny to see how Ross may have reacted to certain scenes in the first series in comparison to how he would react in a similar scene in series five.
“That is not something you think about at the time but through the evolution of character it is interesting to see. For someone who is naturally impulsive and flippant and very much wore his heart on his sleeve it is nice to see Ross grow up and learn responsibilities in the right way and to the right people.”
Whilst Ross may have grown up, he still manages to get into swashbuckling adventures. In series five, Ross jumps to the aid of an old friend despite the mission being incredibly treacherous.
“Ned Despard and Ross were soldiers together in Virginia during the war and Ned is someone Ross has always looked up to and used as a template for his own life,” said Aidan. “Ned is impulsive and has a real sense of adventure and fearlessness to him. Vincent Regan who plays Ned is great and such a lovely guy, he was perfect for this character.
“I love doing all of the different stunts and sword fighting is a lot of fun.
“You learn the choreography for the fights and you’re safe in rehearsals but on the day there is this unsaid thing with actors who are doing fight scenes that you have to pull it off and so you really lean into it.
“Also if you use plastic swords they tend to wobble a little so we had to use the real things. It was our first week in Cornwall and Vincent and I were rehearsing on the beach in the sunshine which was pretty cool.”
Poldark, BBC1, 9pm, tonight.
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