Martin Freeman has admitted he felt humiliated after failing to prepare for a scene while filming BBC’s The Responder, adding that he ‘should have known better’.
The actor, 50, who refused to specify which moment in the police drama he was referring to, confessed he made the gaffe in front of 80 people working on the show.
Speaking to MailOnline at the BFI & Radio Times Television Festival, the veteran film star said he was left thinking, ‘F*****g hell, I’m not ready,’ after realising his mistake.
Worrying: Martin Freeman has admitted he felt humiliated after failing to prepare for a scene while filming BBC’s The Responder, adding that he ‘should have known better’
He began: ‘It is a more akin to athletics and sport actually than people would realise. You’ve got to do something. You’ve got to be physically prepared, you’ve got to be mentally prepared.
‘For me, it’s about focus and I don’t say that to sort of pretend, “Oh we all just turn up and one minute we’re looking at the crossword and the next minute, you know, like…”
The Hobbit star, who starred as night officer Chris Carson in a fictional Merseyside constabulary, soon let slip that his gaffe has taught him to concentrate better.
Hilarious: The actor, 50, who stars as former first responder Chris Carson in the series based upon a true story, admitted he’s ‘not always the best judge’ of himself though (pictured in-character)
He continued: ‘Sometimes some things don’t take a massive amount of prep and some things really do and I learned this in an early episode in The Responder.
‘I didn’t prep enough for something for a scene, that is in the show unfortunately, and I knew it. As we turned over, I was like, “F*****g hell, I’m not ready.”
‘I had to go through this relative humiliation of doing something in front of 80 people knowing that I wasn’t doing a good enough job. I’m quite old now and I should know better.
‘I’ve been doing this a long time so what I’m saying is you can always be surprised if you’re not doing… if you haven’t tended to that detail enough.
Worrying: Speaking to MailOnline at the BFI & Radio Times Television Festival, the veteran film star said he was left thinking, ‘F*****g hell, I’m not ready,’ after realising his mistake
‘That’s why I tend to look at it more as if you’ve got to concentrate on something, go away, it’s not necessarily… I don’t call it method acting.
‘I think that’s a misused term anyway I guess but it’s not me knowing, believing I’m the character in some weird transubstantiation thing.
‘I know I’m an actor playing a part but some things need more focus than others is the truth.’
With a second season on its way, the six-part miniseries was written by ex-police officer Tony Schumacher, with the story following crisis-stricken, unconventional officer Chris as he worked a series night shifts while on the beat.
Focus: The Hobbit star, who starred as night officer Chris Carson in a fictional Merseyside constabulary, soon let slip that his gaffe has taught him to concentrate better
His character battled to keep things together both professionally and personally as his marriage was on the rocks, while he was also struggling with his mental health.
With Chris forced to work with new rookie partner Rachel (Adelayo Adedayo), both officers had learn that in order to survive the high-pressure and unabating environment of the night shift, they’ll have to work together.
Scenes from the series highlighted the comical and challenging aspects of the job.
Event: Martin was joined at the event by Sir Bob Geldof, who spoke during a panel discussion on the BBC 100: Live Aid special
The show was based around the real-life experiences of ex-Merseyside officer and first-time writer Tony, and aimed to ‘holdup a mirror up to the emotional, heartbreaking extremes of modern day policing’.
As well as The Capture star Adelayo, he was supported by a stellar cast in The Responder, including Ian Hart and MyAnna Buring.
Meanwhile, Warren Brown, David Bradley, Kerrie Hayes and Rita Tushingham, as well as newcomers Josh Finan and Emily Fairn, made up the cast.
Discussion: The Sherlock star was also seen posing for images with Laurence Bowen (far left) and Tony Schumacher (far right) during the photocall
***
Read more at DailyMail.co.uk