Sean Bean was on stunning form as Tracie, the trannie with a big heart and an even bigger wig, in Jimmy McGovern's The Accused.
PICTURES: Watch Sean Bean transform himself into Tracie...
He showed a vulnerable, humorous, romantic side we've never seen before from the star of Lord of the Rings, Game of Thrones and countless other capers where, as he put it in an interview with the Times, "Sean Bean comes in and chops his head off".
But... he's a bona-fide British heart-throb, a man's man, a Sheffield Blade from his football club tattoo to his four broken marriages and afternoons in the pub. But now we've seen him trying to run for his life in heels and, worse, lonely and dis-spirited as the broken-hearted Simon who has to channel Tracie for courage. It might be a while before we get over this and accept him on horse-back, brandishing his weapons, giving his narrow-eyed stare and enticing fair maiden with his silent but strong charisma. Never mind - as he said himself, it was time for a change.
So, Sean Bean - as manly as he ever was? Here's a reminder...