Rufus Sewell on the Real Lord M

- We were kind of excited that people didn't know Melbourne, like perhaps they could.

When I first found out about him, I was suspicious that Daisy had kind of cooked him up.

You know, kind of a Frankenstein's monster made of all these various literary characters, because it seems too interesting a relationship to have not been fully explored before.

It is my job, no it is my duty, to see that you come to no harm.

He'd grown up with a father, who in the language of the day, you might have called a bit of a booby.

And a mother who was brilliant, and wild, and outrageous, and artistic, and imaginative, and vivacious, and naughty.

In this household where there were lovers coming and going, it was full of all of the poets and artists, and thinkers, and politicians, and royals, and debauchers of the day.

It was more like the 60s, the romantic period.

You know, the Shelleys and the Byrons.

(laughing) - Lord M.

- My disguise is not very effective, it seems.

It was the period that the Victoriana was a reaction against.

The shirt of that period was opened down to the waist, and it just got buttoned up.

Really by Albert's crew.

Albert who'd come from a family where his mummy had run away when he was a little boy.

That was what Victoriana came from.

And it was all about closing down all of that to keep the family safe and tight.

He was actually, remarkably, unambitious.

Well, I suppose if you're already a lord.

But there were still people who wanna win.

You know, they're born with everything, they want more.

It becomes about domination, and becomes about, you know.

It becomes like a drug.

He didn't have that.

Politically, he was a very successful politician, but he wasn't regarded as successful politician because he wasn't hugely loved by his own party, because he always conceded too much ground to the others.

And he was never loved by the opposing party because he didn't concede enough.

He just managed to keep everyone equally unhappy, so that he stayed in power for a very long... He was actually very, very canny, and very good with people.

And he wanted nothing from any of them.

He was kind of, by the time he met Victoria, he was kind of over it.

I'm no longer in politics, ma'am.

It would be wrong for me to advise you.

- That's not the kind of advice I need.

I want to talk to you about marriage.

- Well, there too I'm hardly qualified.

- Well, I've come to you, nevertheless.

- He'd been involved in a lot of scandals.

Sometimes, purely for being just a great friend to people, and having had smears against him.

And sometimes because of love affairs.

And sometimes being married to Lady Caroline Lamb, who was brilliant, but also ended up quite unstable ran away with Lord Byron.

And all of those things go towards making him a really kind of refreshing character, especially in that period.

There can be no doubt about that, ma'am.

When I read Melbourne, and then, I studied him a little, and read the biography from David Cecil, I just really took to him.

I just genuinely liked him.

(soft music)