Interview with the Merlin cast

Features

Interview with the Merlin cast

Bradley James, Colin Morgan and Katie McGrath in Merlin

"There's a lot more going on this year," says Colin Morgan, the 23-year-old star of BBC1's fantasy drama Merlin, which returns for a second 13-part series, having proved a big hit last year despite going up against The X Factor during Saturday primetime.

"More action, more romance, and the stories are more complex this time," he promises.

The show's fresh spin on the Camelot legend, focusing instead on wizard novice Merlin and king-in-waiting Arthur as adolescent contemporaries, continues with the magical formula of pairing relative newcomers with veteran thesps.

Alongside Morgan are Bradley James as Arthur, Katie McGrath as Morgana, ward to Camelot's autocratic king Uther Pendragon, and Angel Coulby as Gwen (Guinevere), Morgana's servant and friend.

In the elders' camp are Anthony Head (Uther), Richard Wilson as Gaius, court physician and mentor to Merlin, and John Hurt voicing the imprisoned Great Dragon. But it's the four young leads who drive the story, and all agree that this series two is bigger, bolder, and a whole load scarier…

Growing up

"Last series was dark in places," says Morgan, "but it had elements of fun and charm. Those light-hearted elements are still there, but we get darker and darker, and more adult. It's exciting to push it in those directions. Merlin is realising his place in the world."

"These episodes are full-on straight away," adds James. "They're packed! What's great is that Arthur grows up a bit. You can't continue to have Merlin saving him every episode. And Arthur has to, in a sense, find out about Merlin's magical powers. There's only so long that he can be oblivious to what's really quite obvious to the audience."

"All the characters grow up this series," says Coulby, "because so have we as actors. They're writing more for us this time around, although we're all quite like our characters - Bradley in particular! He just is Prince Arthur. And Colin is very Merlin-ish in real life. We're becoming synonymous with these characters, but that's such a privilege."

Becoming legends

"For most of us, Merlin is our first big job," says McGrath, "and all of a sudden you're on a show that's a hit, it's being shown all over the world, and that's just incredible. I saw myself dubbed into Italian the other day! That was weird. I sound like a 45-year-old woman! I can never watch myself in Italy again."

Do the cast get recognised a lot? What do people tend to say? James grins. "I get 'err, did we go to school together?' and 'you're Arthur!' is a popular exclamation. But rarely 'you're Bradley James'. I look like a surfer or a student. Unless I'm being chased by a mythical creature or wielding a sword, people don't really recognise me! Colin gets it much worse than I do."

Is seeing your face plastered across magazines, merchandise, billboards and buses must, at best, a bit unsettling? "I found the buses strange," Morgan admits, "but then it's only a photograph." Well, a six-foot photograph. Of your face. On a bus.

"The thing is, when those buses were about, we weren't in London or anywhere to see them. We were away filming. If I'd thought about it too much, my head wouldn't have been in the right place to play the part. For me, it's more about the role of Merlin."

Friendship

Each series takes around eight months to shoot, with filming divided between Northern France (in and around Château de Pierrefonds castle) and Wales, so the cast has become incredibly close-knit.

"We've got to know each other really well," says Coulby. "It's a real ensemble atmosphere. We all work together - not just in terms of the storylines, but off set as well. If you've a problem, there's always someone to chat to about it."

"Filming is like a holiday," says McGrath. "Like, yesterday, none of us were needed on set, but we all came in anyway, to watch some jousting scenes. The four of us were sat there, chilling out, watching on the monitors, and having an amazing time. It's a beautiful atmosphere. Guest actors come in [including Mackenzie Crook, Adrian Lester and Charles Dance this series] and say that it's the most welcoming show ever."

Love and romance

"The producers and writers have decided to move the story on quite quickly," says Coulby, "especially Gwen's relationship with Arthur. [The writers] wanted to progress towards the legend that everybody knows. In series one, Gwen fancied Merlin, but that's sort of been brushed away…"

"Arthur hasn't really been aware that Gwen exists," James continues, "but that's about to change. For some time, 'shippers' online have been pairing Arthur with Gwen, or Gwen with Merlin, or even Merlin and Arthur! It's kind of a compliment that people enjoy elaborating on the Arthur/Merlin relationships in that way," laughs James, "but I'm pretty sure - and I hope to God - that we won't be! I think Colin and I would like to avoid going down that route."

Destiny

As the series edges closer to the Arthurian legend, the cast is as eager as the audience to know what the writers have in store.

"We've an idea of where we're going," explains McGrath, "but we don't know how we'll get there, until we get the scripts. So we all sit around going, 'Wouldn't it be great if..?' We have many grandiose theories, only some of which come to fruition. Personally, I think I've got the best character arc in the show. Morgana will become who you think she is, but not in the way that you'd expect…"

Coulby hints that we may even see some Lost-style 'flash-forwards' this series, "but I'm saying no more. They've sort of sexed up Gwen and she's moving towards becoming queen, eventually. Last series, I had more of a hessian-type look, but some of my costumes this year are gorgeous. I get a corset, which is great. If you've had a big lunch, no-one can tell."

Magical creatures

The Great Dragon has a more crucial role this series too. "At last, I got the chance to record my scenes with John Hurt face-to-face," Morgan says, clearly excited.

"Last year, he recorded his dialogue separately, and all I'd have on set was the playback, so John and myself were keen do the scenes together. It was a Merlin moment in history. You can get a bit starstruck meeting legends like John, but he's such a lovely guy. We had a laugh. He's very accommodating and welcoming to young actors. It was a pleasure, really. He's a brilliant dragon!"

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