Hats off to Julian and Johnny, the producers, for sticking to their guns with the five-season story arc of 'Merlin'. It would have been too easy to give in to demand and stretch the show on beyond their original plan because of its incredible success.
— Colin Morgan
I think TV is a fantastic medium right now because of what you can do visually. It's phenomenal, and it's just getting better and better, but in a way, there's no beating the personal image you can create in your head, with those personal aspects, which you can only get from reading or radio dramas.
I'm a big fan of live music and going to gigs, but I'll leave it to the professionals.
To do stories that I love, scripts that I love, and work with people who are passionate about them and passionate about projects - whether that's on stage or television or film, that's the kind of environment I want to work in.
You immediately hear the word 'Merlin,' you think magic, you think adventure, excitement - you also think 'an old man.'
Who wouldn't want to be wizard, at least for a day, as long as you didn't have the dilemmas and the situations that Merlin was thrown into. I'd be happy if you could actually use the powers to have a bit of fun and do something good for the world and maybe for yourself, whereas Merlin's kind of limited in that he has to look after Arthur.
Merlin is the unsung hero who is often responsible for things turning out positively, but rarely gets credit for that.
You always want to be part of something you're so passionate about.
The enormous responsibility and protectiveness a man has to feel towards his family when they are threatened was a revelation to me. I have now experienced manhood.
I'm delighted to be joining the cast of 'The Fall' for what is going to be an exciting and gripping second series.
It doesn't have to happen for anybody at all, this acting game, so you have to count your blessings. If I am lucky that the right things have come along at the right time, I'm just going to ride that wave.
I never choose a genre over quality. I never think, 'I want to do that,' and sacrifice the fact it might not be very good.
Nowadays, kids know how a programme like Merlin is made and how it works. But the show just seems to grow in popularity the more it goes on.
I read 'The Crystal Cave' book by Mary Stewart, and I thought it was a really, really interesting part of the legend, in which Merlin could enter into the cave with these crystals and see reflections of the future in them and learn how to use that and harness those powers for himself.
When I think of Camelot, I think of the castle in France where we film, but I think it's wrong to lock it down to one place because it's all part of our imagination. They are legends for a reason. Their stories have endured for hundreds of years and, hopefully, they will for hundreds of years to come.
I think anyone who has a passion for what they love to do, and who pursue it, is inspirational for me.
Because it was one of my favorites from the Arthurian legend, one of the things that I really enjoyed doing was the legend of the crystal cave. In my head, it was fun to imagine what it was going to look like because there was a lot of CGI involved, in seeing visions of the future reflected within crystals.
Everyone in London, Wales, and France made the 'Merlin' experience a very, very special one.
I've read a lot of Terry Pratchett's stuff, probably from when I was, like, 14.
I can't actually pinpoint anything that made me want to be an actor - I just did. And then anything after that just fueled it.
Merlin was very definitely supposed to be an old man guiding the young Arthur to the throne.
So many different countries have got their version of what Merlin is: the Scottish say he Scottish, the Welsh say he's Welsh, the French say he's French.
Anybody who's into Arthurian legends will appreciate that they are being re-told. The Arthurian legends have been developed and re-told over the years.
You look for comic relief in difficult times.
I'm still too hungry for whatever comes next.
If I'm not completely daunted, I'm not interested.
'The Living And The Dead' is one of those scripts that you read and are instantly compelled and engaged by. It's intelligent, chilling, and engrossing.
You have to strike while the iron is hot. You have to take downtime to see friends and family, but my passion is acting: pursuing those scary, challenging characters and working with passionate people.
I always look for the character that gets into your guts and tells you, 'You have to play this.' You have to be brave enough to let everything else go and let the character guide you. When I read a script, I look for that kind of pull.
It's weird to be recognised anywhere. The cost of living your dream, acting, is being recognised.
I'm just happy to be doing what I always wanted to do. Sometimes you have to remind yourself how privileged you are.
From what I've read, everyone has a claim on Merlin. Was he Scottish, Welsh, English or even French? All these countries have got a big claim on him and Camelot. That's why the Arthurian legends are so popular - because they are such good stories.
For me, one of my favorites, director-wise, is Tim Burton. I also really admire the work of actors like Sean Penn. He is probably my favorite actor because of his dedication and commitment to roles, and the ability to morph and change himself when he needs to. It's about dedication and commitment and a passion.
My sights have always been on acting, on the creative process, never the lifestyle. Growing up in Northern Ireland when I did, everything was against you if you wanted to do something like that. But I was determined.
You can't take on the qualities of a character that you'd never be cast in - and no one would ever cast you in.
The big, big block in the Arthur/Merlin friendship is the status issue, that Merlin is the servant and Arthur is royalty, and in that time, princes did not socialize with their servants; that wasn't the done thing. It just so happens that their relationship, their friendship, is strong: they have been through the thick and the thin of it all.
I think, as a kid, whenever you say you want to be an actor, you get discouraged, so perhaps if I had have listened to those people telling me that, I might have gone down the route of a teacher. But I was never really going to do that.
Any kids out there, don't base your homework on 'Merlin.' Just enjoy it and then read the books.
I guess there's always a search for happiness.
In any kid's relationship with their parents, there's always an influence there. You always want to do them proud.
The fans are so supportive. It's amazing when you work on something for so long and find that your fans match your passion - and in many cases exceed it. That's really gratifying.
Doors that presented themselves before, which I couldn't walk through, are at least there. And there are a few keyholes I can pick.
Allan Cubitt has written exceptional material, and I feel very privileged to be working with him and the very talented cast.
Most of the characters I'm drawn to, as an actor, are ones that are quite intensely lonely and a bit lost and are looking for some kind of redemptive answer.
I think there are pros and cons to social networking, but on a social, personal level, it's just not for me.
If I had auditioned for 'Merlin' on magic alone, I don't think I'd have got it. Like any kid, I probably had a magic kit, but it's not something I ever pursued. I've never watched a magic show like David Copperfield or used him to base my character on, but I really like David Blaine and Darren Brown. They are doing wonders.
Any Arthurian enthusiast who has watched 'Merlin' has probably concluded that it's not accurate whatsoever - but, it's not meant to be. It's not meant to be a true telling. It's in a fantasy setting, it's really concentrating on the fantasy element.
I cannot wait to come back to Glasgow. I know the place like the back of my hand. In fact, one of the jobs I had as a student was in Cineworld. And I was always at gigs in King Tut's, Nice 'n' Sleazy's and the Barras. I played Ultimate Frisbee down on Glasgow Green and pulled pints in O'Neill's on Queen Street.
The fantasy genre is so in at the moment. Viewers want to escape from their lives and watch something that is so separate from their everyday existence. People have always wanted to escape their lives - that's why they go to movies and the theatre.
For me, it's all I've wanted to do. I did local plays and productions, local theater groups and anything that involved it. And then, I went and studied it, attended drama school and got my first lucky break in the theater in London, and just went from there.
