We continue now with The Musketeer week and the second interview for today is the first one with one of the four Musketeers. Tom Burke talks to the BBC Media Centre about playing Athos. The Musketeers airs Sunday on BBC One.
What attracted you to
the show initially?
I think, unlike other superheroes, what one gleans about the Musketeers, certainly from the source material, is that the good that they do happens in quite a spasmodic manner, in short bursts. I identified with that - if I was ever to be someone who was involved with protecting mankind from peril, I'm not sure if I would be able to do it in a particularly strong and sustained manner. I loved that about the characters in the book, they are extremely eccentric and do what they can, when they can. When I came on board there was only two episodes written so I was saying yes to what was there, but also to the whole idea of the show. It was more than just a script; there was a history and a heritage to it. The scripts Adrian has written are snappy, fast-paced and full of wit.
Did you re-read the novel before embarking on the project?
I did yes, and I dipped in and out of it whilst we were shooting the project. I also read quite a lot of other Dumas stories. I think The Musketeers is probably the Dumas novel people are most familiar with, or if not that, it's The Count Of Monte Cristo. I've always been a big fan of Dumas because, on the one hand, he writes a lot about revenge, but he also writes about the cost of it to the revenger - I'd always had an interest in that.
How did you approach playing Athos?
I think, unlike other superheroes, what one gleans about the Musketeers, certainly from the source material, is that the good that they do happens in quite a spasmodic manner, in short bursts. I identified with that - if I was ever to be someone who was involved with protecting mankind from peril, I'm not sure if I would be able to do it in a particularly strong and sustained manner. I loved that about the characters in the book, they are extremely eccentric and do what they can, when they can. When I came on board there was only two episodes written so I was saying yes to what was there, but also to the whole idea of the show. It was more than just a script; there was a history and a heritage to it. The scripts Adrian has written are snappy, fast-paced and full of wit.
Did you re-read the novel before embarking on the project?
I did yes, and I dipped in and out of it whilst we were shooting the project. I also read quite a lot of other Dumas stories. I think The Musketeers is probably the Dumas novel people are most familiar with, or if not that, it's The Count Of Monte Cristo. I've always been a big fan of Dumas because, on the one hand, he writes a lot about revenge, but he also writes about the cost of it to the revenger - I'd always had an interest in that.
How did you approach playing Athos?
