Benedict Cumberbatch in Tom Stoppard miniseries for HBO (WASHINGTON POST)

By Lisa de Moraes

Benedict Cumberbatch, the new dulcet-toned fair-haired boy of British thespianism, came to soak up the love of TV critics and talk about his HBO’s broadcast of “Parade’s End” at Winter TV Press Tour 2013.

“Benedict Cumberbatch…has now played the two cleverest men in England – and, of course, Tom Stoppard,” an HBO exec introduced the panel, having earlier called Stoppard “one of the greatest living writers of the English language.”


Cumberbund plays radical Tory Englishman Christopher Tietjens in Stoppard’s adaptation of Ford Maddox Ford’s quartet of Brit history novels that span the twilight years of Edwardian England through World War I. HBO will launch the five-parter on Feb. 26; it aired in the UK last year.

“Benedict, you have not only played the two cleverest men in England, but you’ve done the words of the two cleverest men in England,” one critic gushed, wondering “What is it like to do the words of these guys and to do these incredibly witty things that they have you say?”

(That second cleverest man reference would be Steven Moffat who penned the “Sherlock” scripts Cummerbund performs in the PBS highly-mini series.)

“Very humbling because they’re far brighter than you could ever possibly be,” said Cumberbatch, appearing via satellite, from London.

He compared it to “extraordinary pieces of classical music,” which, he noted, does have to be interpreted by an actor if anyone’s going to hear it.

“Benedict, this has been such an amazing year for you with all the things that are happening in your career. Could you just reflect a little bit on where you’ve come and what you’re achieving this year and so far?” another critic gushed.

Cumberbatch smiled and laughed. “That’s it, really -- it’s a big smile and a laugh…Embarrassment of riches is the headline, I think.”

Stoppard, who’d not gotten any questions at that point and who, like Cumberbatch, was appearing via satellite, jumped in and noted Cumberbatch had already done “Frankenstein” with Jonny Lee Miller at the National Theatre, alternating the roles of Dr. Frankenstein and his monster.

“Yeah,” responded Cumberbatch. Stoppard had struck a nerve, what with Miller now playing Holmes on CBS, of which neither he nor Moffat approves.

“And you had finished filming ‘War Horse.’,” Stoppard continued. “So we didn’t pluck you from the chorus.

Then he told a story about smoking cigarettes with Cumberbatch in the made-for-movie trenches of Flanders while Cumberbatch was shooting “War Horse,” giving critics a moment to think of a question for Stoppard.

One wondered about the challenge Stoppard faced in adapting the series of novels, guessing “it was considerable.”

“You possibly already know quite a lot about the book,” Stoppard told the room full of critics and blogalists – the best gag of the press tour’s first day.

Then he began to detail that challenge.

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