Aidan Turner to star as Ross Poldark in Mammoth's new BBC...

Aidan Turner to star as Ross Poldark in Mammoth's new BBC One series Company NewsPress ReleaseProductions February 28, 2014

BBC One today has revealed Aidan Turner (The Hobbit Trilogy, Being Human) as the new star of POLDARK.

Debbie Horsfield's adaptation of Winston Graham's acclaimed saga , set in 18th Century Cornwall, will be an 8-part series directed by Ed Bazalgette (The Guilty, Endeavour) and produced by Eliza Mellor (Death Comes to Pemberley).

Britain is in the grip of a chilling recession . falling wages, rising prices, civil unrest only the bankers are smiling. It's 1783, and Ross Poldark (Aidan Turner) returns from the American War of Independence to his beloved Cornwall to find his world in ruins . his father dead, the family mine long since closed, his house wrecked and his sweetheart pledged to marry his cousin. But Ross finds that hope and love can be found when you are least expecting it in the wild but beautiful Cornish landscape.

Aidan Turner says; I'm very excited to play Ross Poldark for the BBC and it's obviously a huge challenge to honour the extraordinary character Winston Graham created and who Debbie Horsfield has brought new life to. But there's a terrific team coming together and the scripts are superb, so I can't wait to get started.

A man of contradictions, Ross has a strong sense of social justice but a contempt for authority. He's a man of principle yet frequently a rebel. Reckless yet full of integrity. Charismatic but down-to-earth. Volatile yet fiercely loyal. Torn between two women and two social classes. A hero to most, a scourge too many.

Damien Timmer, Executive Producer for Mammoth Screen adds; Ross Poldark is an iconic role we needed an actor with the right combination of striking looks, youthful rebelliousness, emotional complexity and maturity of presence which hints at the man he becomes across the saga. In our minds there was only one candidate. Happily he said yes!

Andrew Graham, author Winston Graham's son adds: I am delighted at the choice of Aidan Turner as Ross, as I am sure my father would have been. Ross in the novels was a man of dark good looks, impulsive temperament, strong loyalties and deep emotions. I am greatly looking forward to seeing Aidan bring all these qualities freshly to life.

Filming begins in Cornwall and Bristol in April and the series will transmit in 2015. Executive producers are Debbie Horsfield, Rebecca Keane, Karen Thrussell and Damien Timmer for Mammoth Screen and Polly Hill, Head of Independent Drama, for the BBC.

LINK:	http://www.mammothscreen.com/company-news/aidan-turner-to-star-as-ross...
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