Doctor Who star Arthur Darvill picks his favourite spot in the universe...and it's in Brum

Sep 18 2011 by Roz Laws, Sunday Mercury

Their creativity rubbed off on Arthur. He joined the Stage 2 Theatre Company at the age of 10 and later formed his own acting group, Fuego’s Men. He plays keyboards and guitar and formed a band called Edmund, named after his favourite character in The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe.

“We even made a CD, though hardly anybody bought it,” says Arthur, who has also played guitar at some of Fyfe Dangerfield’s gigs – the pair were friends at Bromsgrove School.

“I was in New York doing promotion for Doctor Who and someone stopped me in the street to ask me to sign an Edmund CD.

“That was very weird. I thought ‘How the hell did they get hold of that?’.

“I don’t mind being recognised for something I’m proud of, though attention is not something I crave or seek. I’ve actually grown a beard, which helps disguise me.”

Arthur admits that when he was first cast as Rory, he had no idea that he would become such an important member of the Doctor’s team.

Recent episodes have seen him blossom into an action and romantic hero.

“Apparently this was always the plan for Rory, but I wasn’t told!” he laughs. “I didn’t know how long Rory was going to be in it.

‘‘You can be written out at any point, especially when Steven Moffat had this running joke about killing Rory off and bringing him back to life.

“The cast are kept guessing and excited.

‘‘It is dangerous for an actor to know what your end point is, as it will affect how you play it.

“I must admit I don’t always understand everything about the plot, but then Rory doesn’t either. “Punching Hitler was a good day of my life!,” he adds.

Arthur’s success now is a far cry from his worst ever job, as an elf at Santa’s Kingdom at the NEC.

“It was horrible,” he winces.

“I didn’t enjoy the hours, the costume or the humiliation.”

roz.laws@sundaymercury.net