Eccleston: Best scripts from TV

Christopher Eccleston is glad some film actors turn up their nose at small screen parts - because it leaves him with the plum TV roles.

The actor, who stars in new BBC One drama Blackout, has appeared in shows including Our Friends In The North and Doctor Who.

He told the Guardian: "Some film actors, thank God, won't do television. Which is great! I've done feature films, but the best scripts I've ever had have been in television.

"When you're writing for film, you've got a wider canvas and you can concentrate on the visuals. With television, you really can't get away with that much."

Christopher said of his character in Blackout, Manchester politician Daniel Demoys: "He's an idealist. But something got stalled along the way and that's curdled in him.

"He's disappointed about where he is and what he does. There's an element of Macbeth in there."

Blackout begins on BBC One on Monday.