Daniel Radcliffe tells TV Times magazine about his post-Potter career, getting naked stage and screen, his man-crush on the hosts of Pointless and his new series of Sky Arts 1's A Young Doctor's Notebook (Thursday, Nov 21)...
Has it been hard trying to shake off Harry Potter and become this versatile leading man?
"I never want to seem like I want to get away from Potter, because I love those films and what they did for me, and I’m incredibly proud of them. But essential to longevity in a career is being able to be seen as an actor rather than just as one character."
You're only 24, yet are a multi-millionaire! Does that mean you can pick and choose which roles you want to accept?
"I’m in a fortunate position where I’ve been made financially secure, where I don’t have to do a job that I don’t want to. If you want to talk about something really valuable that money can buy you, it’s the luxury of being able to choose to do things like that."
You star in Young Doctor’s Notebook alongside Mad Men star Jon Hamm. Has your extensive theatre experience come in handy on the show?
"Yeah, I did a lot more dancing in this series than I ever intended. I think the writers were like, 'Ok, what else can we throw at him?' It did become like a game to them to see what else they could chuck at me in the last minute, but it was fun."
You've taken on some challenging roles which have seen you appear naked on stage and shoot sex scenes. What impact has that had?
"I said unless it’s absolutely necessary that I get naked, I won’t. I did it in the stage play Equus in 2007 and I still get asked questions about that, then in three films last year. I thought people were going to start saying it’s something Dan Radcliffe has written into his contract!"
Has it been interesting for you to move into darker roles?
"I sat down with Jon at the read-through and said, “Wow, this is going to be really interesting for me – I’ve never played a character before that is just so completely irredeemable.' And Jon just looked at me and said, 'Welcome to my world...'"
What TV do you enjoy watching?
"I love Pointless so much I have the book. Hosts Alexander Armstrong and Richard Osman are fully aware of how much I love them and it’s embarrassing! I have a man-crush on the Pointless team."
What do you see happening for you in the future?
"It’s about constantly trying to change stuff up; that’s how I will have the most fun doing my job. I only really get tired if I’m bored. If I’m not stimulated then I shut down – I’m like a dog in that way!"
