Aidan Turner might not be completely comfortable with being labelled a sex symbol, but the actor has admitted he only has himself to blame for that topless scene in ‘Poldark’.
The 33-year-old found himself a whole load of new fans - and hot-under the collar viewers - when the first series featured a scene of him scything in a field, sans shirt.
Now the star has confessed that it was actually him who came up with the idea of removing his top.
He tells Radio Times: “It was never in the script that he takes his top off – it just made sense to me.
“That’s the worst thing about it. It was my bloody idea.
“It was so hot that day, and we had a whole field to do so I thought, well, he wouldn’t be in a shirt… It’s so thick I can’t even move in it. I’d be sweating straightaway.
“I was thinking he’d leave the shirt – have maybe a towel or something, dry himself off and put a drier shirt on afterwards. So I just took it off, not thinking it would cause a stir.”
Despite his obvious physical attributes, Aidan says he never expected the scene to cause such a fuss.
“I wasn’t prepared for what happened when the scene went out,” he says. “The reaction was – well, it was very unexpected.
“Somebody sent me a clip of Chris Evans, scything naked – or certainly topless. That was hilarious.
“But yeah, I think keep the tops on, fellas. I still stand by the drama involved in it, and I think we pulled off what was required. As distracting as it might be at times and no matter what it’s become to some people, I still think the scene works.”
Despite his admission, Aidan’s ‘Poldark’ co-star, Eleanor Tomlinson, has revealed that he is getting “fed up” with the attention the topless scene created.
The actress told The Sunday Telegraph: ‘’I think Aidan, bless him, is getting a bit fed up with it.
Read the full interview with Aidan Turner in this week’s Radio Times, out now. www.radiotimes.com.