All The Fun of the Fight

The second series of Poldark has its fair share of fights and fisticuffs with Ross (Aidan Turner), George Warleggan (Jack Farthing) and even Dr. Dwight Enys (Luke Norris) seeing a bit of action.

Aidan has had plenty of fight training over the years as many of his screen roles have involved a brawl or battle somewhere along the way. Making Desperate Romantics in 2009, Aidan said he found the scene where he's involved in a punch-up 'scary', but he sees things differently now on Poldark. ‘I really enjoy the fight scenes, they are so much fun,' he says, 'George is working out, he’s boxing and training so he is well able to handle himself these days which makes the fight more interesting. He’s quite vicious in some of these fights. There’s a lot of strangling and throwing ourselves into bookcases, and smashing glass. I put his head into a fire at one stage! Jack (Farthing) is a lovely guy, that’s probably why I enjoy the fight scenes so much because I really like him. He is such a brilliant actor, and I have learnt so much from him.’

And it seems Jack Farthing who plays George has been preparing himself for a scrap. As Jack reveals, ‘George persuades himself that the thing to do is to try and become more

Photo: Official Poldark

of a physical match for Ross, not that he ever really will. To present himself as a different kind of man, not all curlers and frills, he decides to build himself up and starts training. We did some 18th Century boxing, which is very different to modern boxing, it’s all sort of long arm and at a distance. It looks quite funny and a little pathetic…

‘I had a great day with an amazing stuntman who had literally just stepped off the Bond film the day before - he was an absolute tank! George may not be made of muscles but if he puts his mind to something it will be right. That’s what I wanted to aim for. By the end he is a real match for his instructor. That was really good fun.’

Luke Norris as Dwight Enys also gets involved in the fights and, for Luke, this is a reminder of earlier times. ‘About six years ago I got hit in a stage fight and it has left a permanent scar on my face so I am always a bit wary about the fight scenes,' he says, 'I was doing this play for six weeks and we went out on stage one time and instead of aiming to miss the guy had a brain burp and clobbered me straight in the mouth. I’m properly cautious now.’ But Dwight is a loyal friend of Ross's and is always there for him. As Luke says, 'Dwight’s definitely a corner man in the fight. Ross is the boxer and Dwight is the man patching him up.’

Well I'm really glad Dwight is there to look after Ross and, while I'm flinching at Ross being hit at least I can now tell myself that this is Aidan's idea of fun!

Related links:
Poldarked: Aidan Turner: Fighting Talk
Poldarked: Aidan Turner "I Love a Bit of Boxing"

Source: BBC Media