Timothy Innes joined the cast of The Last Kingdom during its most recent season, season 3, assuming the pivotal role of Prince Edward. Following the death of his father Alfred, Edward assumed the throne of Wessex as king. In an exclusive interview with Winter Is Coming, Innes takes us behind the scenes of season 4, reveals his secret comfort show, and teases what’s to come, including how Edward will (or won’t) get along with lead character Uhtred (Alexander Dreymon).

But first up, Innes described what it was like to join the series in season 3:

[A]t first it felt like being the new kid at school. It was one of those things where on the first day everyone knew each other and were asking about each others’s holidays while I was the loner pretending to look through my bag. But everyone was so welcoming and generous that it didn’t take long to feel like one of the family.

It didn’t take long for Innes to warm up to his character, either. “[Edwared] has a lot of great qualities; he has a good heart and a strategic mind, often having to make important decisions in high pressure situations. But more importantly, it seems stressful living in 9th century England. There’s a lot of angry Danes with swords and axes, ongoing battles and not to mention the lack of hygiene so anyone living at that time who had to deal with those things day to day has my admiration.”

The Last Kingdom is based on The Saxon Tales, a series of novels by Bernard Cornwell. Naturally, you’d think that cast members would want to read the books to get a better sense of their characters. “Yeah, I did read the books, but I found a lot of the time the scripts differ and change from them so mainly I just read them to discover elements about my character and to get the overall feel of the time and environment,” Innes said. “It’s pretty exciting when you get the new scripts through and you discover new plot twists and who your character interacts with.”

Although The Saxon Tales are fiction, Edward was a real guy, so Innes has more than one source to go on. We’re intrigued by the idea of unexpected plot twists, though.

What’s been the most challenging thing for Innes to film so far? He hinted at something yet to come in season 4:

It’s hard to say without giving too much away but the battles are always pretty physically and mentally challenging especially when you’ve got choreographed fight scenes to do in the hot Hungarian sun. But I’d say for Edward there’s a lot of long political Witan scenes involving discussions and war with words. Mentally you have to be on the ball picking up cues and knowing your journey through the scene but these are also fun because the verbal chess element of it often feels like you’re in a play.

Edward, while present at some of season 3’s battles, did not actively participate in them, so Innes’ comment about choregraphy hints at a more involved role for Edward come season 4. Ditto what he said when we asked if Edward was more of a thinker than a fighter. “I beg to differ. Edward kicks ass.” Break out the airhorn, we’re officially hyped.

Sitting Edward aside for a moment, Innes spoke about season 4 in general. With King Alfred dead, this will be uncharted territory. “It does feel like a fresh start in a way. But I feel that’s what keeps the show new and exciting and what makes the audience on the edge of their seats. You can expect some cool new characters with cool new hairdo’s and even returning characters with cool new hairdo’s. It’s all very exciting. Also Alexander Dreymon’s blue eyes, you can definitely expect them.”

Speaking of Dreymon, his character always had a complicated relationship with Edward’s father, but in the end Uhtred chose to serve Edward in part due to his relationship with Alfred. Does that mean Edward and Uhtred will get along better?

With any relationship there’s always going to be good days and bad days. And the key to a healthy and long lasting relationship is many aspects; respect, acceptance, empathy, the ability to listen and most importantly honesty. Honesty builds the foundation for communication and trust. However in the 9th century no one seemed to care about this, so I’d say strap in for more hostility.

And of course, we had to ask Innes if there was anyone he wished he could work with more. “Ian Hart (Beocca). Always Ian Hart.” Hard to argue with that.

But, enough talk of The Last Kingdom, what does Innes enjoy when he’s not pretending to be a medieval English king? “At the moment I like to unwind by running or swimming and hanging out with mates. I play the drums also and my brother’s in a band so whenever he needs a drummer I play at his gigs which is fun.”

All good answers. And what of TV, the only pastime that truly matters?

I’ve just finished Last Chance U and What We Do in the Shadows. But right now I like after a day’s filming to watch something easy and light, so I’m not ashamed to say that I’m blitzing through Dawson’s Creek. For some reason there’s something comforting about getting lost in their simple lives. Watching it’s like being covered in a warm blanket.

There you have it folks, the king of Wessex is currently binging Dawson’s Creek. I don’t wanna wait for our lives to be over to watch The Last Kingdom season 4.

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