The Merlin interviews
01/09/2008 . Source: Jessica Martin 
SFcrowsnest looks at the actors who appear in the new Merlin TV series, including John Hurt who plays a dragon (little-known fact: he also did the voice work for Watership Down), and Buffy the Vampire Slayer's own Anthony Head who plays evil-type Uther Pendragon. Buy Merlin in the USA - or Buy Merlin in the UK  Colin Morgan plays Merlin
You'd be forgiven for thinking Colin Morgan was born to play the part of history's most famous sorcerer. He was warming up for the role when he was just three.
"Even when I was really young I wanted to perform and do shows. I also had this fascination with magic. I was doing magic tricks when I was three," explains the 22-year-old who grew up in Armagh, Northern Ireland. If I ever saw magic on television I would say: 'I want that. That's what I want from Santa Claus'. So the cupboard in my bedroom was full of boxes of magic tricks, cups and balls, cards and foam rabbits, all sorts of stuff."
It's little surprise then that Colin leapt at the opportunity of playing the young Merlin.
"When they told me I'd been cast I was ridiculously delighted. I ran around my flat screaming," he admits.
Morgan's Merlin is a spirited but naive young man who, when he first arrives in Camelot, steps into a world more dangerous than he understands.
"When he first enters Camelot, Merlin is a loose cannon. He has this natural ability that he is aware of. He has the ability to do magic but he can't control it, it just happens," Colin explains. "He believes he will be quite safe in that environment, that he will able to use his powers in a free way. But when he enters Camelot he sees someone die for using magic so it becomes clear that using his God-given gift is a no go. And that's a big shock to him. A lot of the story deals with Merlin keeping his power a secret, even as he uses it to deal with situations."
Colin admits there are similarities between himself and Merlin that run deeper than their interest in magic.
"They've very much cast this according to personality and a lot of aspects of Merlin's personality are quite similar to me in a way," he explains. "For instance I'm extremely enthusiastic about things and Merlin is like that. He gets involved in every challenge he faces and he always gives it his best shot, 100 per cent. During filming I was asked to do some pretty outrageous stuff. Last week, for instance, I had to run full pelt into a freezing cold lake to rescue Arthur in the rain. I also tend to look for the funnier, lighter side of things that Merlin does. At the same time I am serious when I need to be, which is something Merlin also is when he slips into action hero mode."
The two also share a natural inquisitiveness. "Merlin has a natural curiosity about things. He will go and suss things out," Colin explains.
That curiosity was well to the fore when Morgan was researching the real Merlin, no easy task given the lack of any real historical evidence about a figure some historians argue never existed.
"There's very little written about him and his early life in particular. There is a bit about him growing up without a father and being bullied and persecuted because of that. There is also a bit that claims his father was a demon and his mother was made pregnant by a demon," he says. "There is a fair bit of strange stuff like that. One of the most bizarre things I've read about him is that Shakespeare knew where Merlin's tomb was and was murdered for knowing the secret."
Among the few pieces of information Morgan found, however, there were some that proved useful in creating the character of the boy wizard.
"There are stories about Merlin as a boy having to deal with things that I found useful. He had a deep intelligence. He was not silly. He knew when he needed to stick his ground."
Colin was intrigued by the idea of a figure that became powerful without resorting to violence.
"He is not a fighter at all. He would not know how to wield a sword to save his life," he explains.
Colin believes the enduring fascination with Merlin and the Arthurian legend is down to two main factors.
"I think the simplest reason is that they are good stories. But they are also very intriguing and mysterious. The dark ages are called the dark ages for a reason; we don't know much about them so we can't separate fact from fiction. What's especially good about that from Merlin's perspective is that there is a lot written about Merlin as an old man. That's what you think of immediately - an old man, with a beard and a cloak. There is a bit written about him as a boy but then there's a huge gap that's not dealt with. That's what this series is dealing with, the period of Merlin's life that's not been dealt with before. The story is so fantastical and adventurous. We are not saying this is the truth what we are saying is that this is a version of his story that has not been written or seen before."
There is something fantastical about the way Morgan's life has gone in the past few years. Born and raised in Armagh, he came from a family with no background in acting whatsoever.
"My mother is a nurse and dad is a painter and decorator. So it was not an obvious choice of career for me," he smiles.
But, as his early magic shows testified, he had a burning desire to perform from an early age.
"From when I was really young one of the first things I did was to perform and do shows. It was like a natural instinct."
After studying at the Belfast Institute he went to the RSAMD in Glasgow. He was planning on taking some time off after graduating but, purely for experience, went for an audition for a role in Vernon God Little, the stage adaptation of DCB Pierre's Booker winning novel.
"I was planning on travelling. All my friends were auditioning for something so I thought I'd do it for experience. I got offered the part which was a surprise. I decided to do it. The best decision I've ever made. I left college three-quarters of the way through my final year and got assessed on the play as part of my grade. After that it happened very quickly for me."
Almost immediately he was cast in two other plays. Television roles in The Catherine Tate Show and Doctor Who soon followed. He has been so immersed in filming Merlin for the past six months that he has had little time to dwell on the impact his latest - and biggest - role will have on his career and life in general.
With the show set to be aired in the US as well as in the UK, he knows his face will soon be a familiar one on both sides of the Atlantic. Whatever happens, he will take it in his stride.
"One of the most important things is to remind yourself of where you are from and be thankful. I don't for a second take anything for granted. That's a good way to start your day," he says.
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Bradley James plays Arthur
Bradley James admits audiences are in for a surprise when they first cast eyes on the young Prince Arthur in Merlin.
"No one is going to like him to begin with," he smiles.
The young man James portrays is a spoilt, boorish and over-protected teenager, which is one of the reasons why the 24-year-old, Devon-born actor was so keen to take on the role.
"One of the appeals of playing him is that he is not really perfect. He is not a noble figure to begin with. He is not a so-called hero, and he is not good for the sake of being good. There are flaws to him," he says. "It's a long journey for him to make to become the Arthur that is so familiar to us."
Arthur's troubled past has made him a proud and emotionally repressed young man, Bradley explains.
"He is a teenager encroaching on adulthood. He's grown up without a mother and he's never had an outlet for his emotions so he is keeping a lot within himself," he says. "He will be King one day. So he would not dare allow his friends to see a weaker side. He's expected to be a pillar of strength. There's a stubbornness that comes with that and as a result he is not able to sympathise with other people."
The arrival in Camelot of the mysterious young Merlin brings out Arthur's worst side at first.
"They fall out straight away when Merlin doesn't take too kindly to the way Arthur is treating a servant," he explains. "Arthur tends to use brute force and ignorance to get what he wants. His privileged upbringing has an effect on his personality. When you grow up with people deferring to you it has an impact on the way you behave. But Merlin is a catalyst for a change in his behaviour. He sees in Merlin a lot more than he judges at first and it helps him realise the kind of man he could become."
A sports fanatic, James admits he has had the time of his life working on Merlin.
"The workload has been very intense. The sword work was the thing I enjoyed the most. They were the most fun sequences. I think that's why they hired me. I look like I can run fast and swing a sword around with conviction," he smiles.
It was a steep learning curve, he admits. "On the first day I found myself holding a sword with Will Mellor charging at me like a maniac. It was like being thrown in at the deep end," he says. "I learned on the job from the brilliant stunt director Andreas Petrides. He was fantastic. He made the whole thing quite easy."
James picked up more than his share of injuries during filming.
"I managed to pick up a bruise most days. I still have a couple of scratches on my arm from Will Mellor. It makes you feel like you are a big warrior hero suffering for his art," he smiles.
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Richard Wilson plays Gaius
Richard Wilson may be one of television's most familiar faces but it's a fair bet there will be many who won't recognise him as the royal physician Gaius, the wisest old head in Camelot.
"I knew I could not be a bald 70 year old who looks like Victor Meldrew so I knew I had to do something, go for a new image. So we went for this," he says, proudly running his fingers through the salt-and-pepper coloured, shoulder-length wig that is obscuring half his face.
As Wilson explains during a break in filming at the spectacular Chateau de Pierrefonds, Gaius is Merlin's guardian and mentor.
"My sister sends him to me because she can't control him any more. He comes as my sort of apprentice," he explains. "Merlin is a natural magician. But magic is banned in the kingdom. So I spend a lot of the early episodes saying: 'don't do that, stop it'."
It is only as the story unfolds that Gaius himself reveals his own abilities as a magician.
Wilson confesses that, his wig aside, the most challenging aspect of the production has been the arcane and colourful language he finds himself having to deliver on camera.
"The only thing about doing magic is that you have to speak a lot of old English. I just find it so difficult to learn," he admits. "I just try to believe in Gaius and to take care of Merlin and give it as much respect as possible. It would be easy to muck about with something like that," he adds.
Working on Merlin has only deepened his admiration for actors like David Tennant who play long-running roles in fantasy and science fiction series.
"That's where I admire David Tennant in Doctor Who. He has had such a steely dedication to mumbo jumbo really. All these knobs, you don't know what they are for but you believe he does," he explains.
Wilson reveals that he came close to turning down the role because of the pressure of work. A successful theatrical director, he was involved in a number of productions in London and was also at work on a new BBC series, Britain's Best Drives, in which he drives vintage motorcars along some of the country's most picturesque routes.
"When I was offered that, I thought that's a nice little summer job and accepted it. Then Merlin came along and I thought 'do I want to turn this down?'," he explains.
Producers Julian Murphy and Johnny Capps were determined to cast him, however, and offered to organise the shooting schedule to suit Wilson.
"They said we will work around you. But working around me has meant its non-stop," he smiles. "But I have enjoyed it. I've realised that no matter how old I am I enjoy working and I'm still learning. This is a great experience. I'm very lucky to have been asked."
If the Merlin magic works and the series becomes a staple of the Saturday night schedules, he may be willing to return to the part - and the wig. One thing is certain, however. Having been so strongly associated with a single role for so long, Wilson is looking forward to having a new generation recognising him as someone other than Victor Meldrew.
He admits reviewers' habit of always referring to his landmark role - even when he is directing rather than acting irritates him.
"The fact that they keep showing it means I know I will never escape him. In a sense it's a compliment I suppose. But when you direct you would think people would give it a break. I bet you when they review me in this they say it's Victor Meldrew in a wig," he laughs.
His hope is that Merlin will make him a familiar face to a new generation of television viewers, one that will soon know him better as Merlin's Gaius than the irritable Mr M.
"Wouldn't that be great? To be able to go out and have youngsters not able to recognise me in the street because I'm bald," he laughs.
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Anthony Head plays Uther Pendragon
As a young boy Anthony Head admits knights in shining armour and the great castles in which their legends were born captivated him.
"We used to travel to France on camping holidays and my big thing was collecting these beautifully crafted toy knights. My parents also built me a big castle which I've still got," he explains during a break from filming. My favourite programmes on television were things like Robin Hood and William Tell. I loved all that."
So when he found himself dressed in full medieval regalia and walking the corridors of the spectacular Chateau de Pierrefonds outside Paris, he couldn't disguise his joy.
"Swanning around in chain mail and armour, getting to dress up in really cool clothes because I'm a king. Has it been fun? Hell yes. It's as if I've come home," he grins.
There were, of course, more mature, professional reasons why he was attracted to playing Arthur's father, King Uther Pendragon, ruler of Camelot. The star of the internationally successful Buffy The Vampire Slayer series, Head was immediately drawn to the potential of Merlin as a mass appeal, family show.
He also saw the opportunity to do for the story of Merlin, Arthur, Guinevere and Morgana what Smallville did for Clark Kent, Lex Luthor, Lois Lane and company.
"When you get pitched an idea like that you think 'well, it could either be really naff or it could be really good'. It depends how they tackle it. And as soon as we were into the first read through it felt very strong. I thought 'no, this works'," he says.
Part of the challenge, he says, was bringing such a large cast of characters to life.
"I know when we did Buffy, which had a lot of principal characters, as a storyteller you have that problem 'how do you get everybody's story in there from the start so that we can track them?'. But they did it."
Head is excited by the new twist on the familiar Arthurian legend that Merlin presents.
"I like the fact that Camelot exists before Arthur comes to power and that it's part of his life. I like the licence they have taken with the story to create this pre-history," he says. "It's fun. It gets in and messes around with things. They introduce characters who will play a part in Arthur's later life."
He admits his own character is one of the drama's darker characters. "He's a complete bastard!" he laughs.
"According to history, legend or whatever, Uther was a drunkard. He was not rumoured to have been a very good king. But I like the fact that they've given him this big bee in his bonnet. He is completely against magic. He has banned magic from his kingdom for, as far as he is concerned, very good reasons."
Head has made Uther a ruthless, brutal leader willing to live - and if necessary, die - by the sword.
"I very much wanted him to be a warrior King. There were a lot of embattled warlords that were vying for power. Uther has snatched this by dint of the fact that he is extremely powerful."
The power he wields within Camelot does not extend into his own family, however. Uther has a difficult relationship with both his son, Arthur, and his adopted daughter, the spirited and scheming Morgana.
"Arthur is his son and heir. He cares deeply about him and cares deeply that he learns the right lessons," he says. "I stood side by side with Morgana's father in many battles and I promised him that if anything should happen to him I would take care of her. And sure enough something happened to him. So I end up with this feisty, angry, late teenager, who doesn't like anything that I do. He doesn't understand why Morgana is so rebellious and fights all the time."
Off camera, however, the young actors have all been keen to get advice from a man who knows more than most about working on a hit television programme.
With Merlin due to be shown on NBC in America too, many have been asking advice on how to survive and thrive on the other side of the Atlantic.
"When they go out to do publicity I've advised them to get American publicity agents. I've said capitalise on it when you can. It's about using the opportunity and opening up the marketplace," he says.
Head has certainly taken advantage of the opportunity that has come his way. Since working on Buffy in the US his career has been going through a golden period. Roles have ranged from the prime minister in Little Britain to a co-starring role with Warren Clarke in The Invisibles.
"I'm getting a fantastic range. It's been really pleasant for the last year-and-a-half. It's really taken off. I'm suddenly being asked to do all sorts of things which I'm enjoying enormously," he says.
If Merlin proves a hit, however, he is keen on the idea of continuing in the role of Uther.
"He is a very interesting character and he is pivotal because he is opposed to everything that's going on," he says. "I'm not optioned for a full series just because I didn't want to get tied up. But if they ask me I'll certainly be around."
Angel Coulby plays Gwen
Rising star Angel Coulby sensed she was joining a special production the moment she arrived on the set of Merlin.
"From the first read through we felt we were at the beginning of something great. It just seemed like something of high quality, the writing is so good and there's a fantastic cast," she explains.
Angel, 28, plays Gwen, a lowly handmaiden to Uther Pendragon's ward Morgana. But she's destined for greater things - one day, history tells us, she will become Queen Guinevere.
"Gwen is Morgana's handmaiden. She's a very kind, sweet person who falls for Merlin on first meeting him. She doesn't know Merlin has these magic powers. She just sees him as an incredibly brave man and his boldness encourages her to take a stand on things she feels strongly about," she explains. "In the beginning she is this quite shy, reasonably innocent character who bumbles her way along. But as things go on a bit more of the queen within begins to emerge. She always has a strong sense of right and wrong of justice and injustice. She talks about ordinary people and how they need to be represented, which is a bit revolutionary in Camelot."
After growing up in Finsbury Park, north London, Angel studied drama at the Queen Margaret College in Edinburgh before breaking into acting with a part in 'Orrible with Johnny Vaughan seven years ago. Since then she has been a regular on our television screens appearing in a range of hits, from Holby City to the acclaimed prison comedy The Visit.
"I've been doing it for seven years now. I feel more comfortable in front of a camera now. I'm sure all actors are the same, they think at the start of every job 'I can't do it' and then it's always fine. That phase is shorter now," she says.
Whilst she didn't have as many stunts to perform as her colleagues Bradley James and Colin Morgan, Angel did have her moments of high excitement.
"The most fun moment was when I had to measure Santiago Cabrera's inside leg. He is in one of the episodes and was lovely, he was gorgeous too," she explains. "Normally he would have to hold the tape at the top but it was only after we'd done the scene that I realised I was holding the tape at both ends. He was very good and professional. We had a laugh about it on set."
There is no doubt that Merlin represents her biggest role yet. If the show is successful here and in the US, she may try her luck in America.
"I will probably go over there at some point. I love living in London, it's where my home and my heart is and I can't imagine living there. But to go over there when you've got a big show on one of the networks is too good an opportunity to pass over," she says.
Katie McGrath plays Morgana
As the adopted daughter of Uther Pendragon, she uses her power - and her looks - to good effect.
"She is Uther's ward. The first lady of Camelot and we are very aware that she is top dog. She is in control and she can manipulate all the men," explains Katie McGrath who plays the scheming beauty. She's very interesting, great fun to play. Not your average, retiring type of girl. She's a go-getter, stand up for herself kind of girl. There's a darker side to her. There are a lot of preconceived notions about Morgana. It becomes obvious that she is not an ordinary princess. She can do things that are not normal."
"It's a completely different take on the legend. It borrows from all the legends. Because it's not based on actual fact it can be taken as it suits us and the audience."
Katie still has to pinch herself at having landed such a high profile role.
"Every now and again I'm standing in a corridor asking myself 'Is this real?' If you had told me that every day I get into this dress and watch sword fighting and dragons, I'd have thought you were mad," laughs the Dublin-born actress.
Her career credits to date include appearances in The Tudors, Eden and Damage on television and the upcoming horror movie Freakdog. Katie has taken advantage of the huge experience within the cast, in particular by asking advice from Richard Wilson and Anthony Head.
"I'm quite new so having people like Richard and Anthony there who are so easy to talk to is great. It's daunting but everyone is so nice. Everyone is rooting for you. It's like a giant family," she smiles.
Despite her relative inexperience, Katie has a wise enough head on her shoulders to know that this is a moment in her career that she should savour. If the show is a success, she would love to see Merlin, Arthur, Gwen and Morgana immortalised in toy figures, like the cast of Doctor Who.
"I want to have a little toy version of Morgana. I can then show it to my grandchildren one day," she says. "So I can say I used to have a waist."
John Hurt plays the Great Dragon
At this stage in his long and illustrious career, it's rare that John Hurt gets a chance to break new acting ground. But his performance as the voice of the Great Dragon in Merlin took him into uncharted territory, not once, but twice.
Surprisingly, despite having worked in more than 100 movies and countless television series, this is Hurt's first foray into drama based on the Arthurian legend.
"I hadn't thought about it but, no, I have never done anything Arthurian before," he says. "In this country you can't help but be drenched in it. It is very much the mythology of these islands. Like all societies we create our myths, but this is probably the strongest myth of all. Like all great myths it involves everything from villainy to heroism, mystery to magic."
It is the visual magic at the heart of Merlin that provided Hurt with the other new acting experience.
The CGI-generated dragon that designers at special effects house The Mill (the Oscar-winning team behind the Gladiator and Doctor Who) created has been built around Hurt's own, distinctive features. To achieve this he had to be fitted with special, high-tech camera equipment.
"It's a process I've never done before," he says. "I'm basically covered in little beads, rather like I have smallpox. They then attach a strange thing that looks like the cone of Concorde to my head. It's basically a crash helmet with a camera attached which follows me around. Whatever I do gets picked up by these beads and they use that to evolve the dragon from the contours of my face. It's very clever."
Hurt has approached the character of the dragon as seriously as if he would any stage or screen role.
"You do have to treat something like this seriously but not solemnly," he says. "I didn't have to go into dragon psychology. And it was huge fun."
The dragon has a strong role to play in Merlin's story.
"He has been imprisoned by Uther Pendragon and will be so for as long as magic is banned," he says. "He is a servant of the old magic, as is Merlin. They are kin in a way. He's quite playful with Merlin on occasions but he is quite grave with him on others. He has got a bit of a temper."
Hurt recorded his performance as the dragon shortly before he was about to head off to America to film. He could easily have passed on the opportunity but was drawn by the quality of the production and its scripts.
"I've done a lot of vocal work which I enjoy enormously," says Hurt, who is perhaps best known for his voice work in Watership Down. "I always apply the same criteria: if I think something stands a chance of working at the level it has ambitions to work at then I will do it. I thought these were rather nice scripts for this type of television." |
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