&

SINCE swapping Downton for downtown Hollywood Dan Stevens has achieved his ambition of becoming a movie star while simultaneously showing he can do more than just play posh English gentlemen.

However his latest film sees him back in familiar territory in Victorian period drama The Man Who Invented Christmas released this Friday.

“I hadn’t done a period thing for a little while. I think we make more of them in the UK than they do in America,” says Dan, 35, who since being killed off in the third series of the hit ITV show has played a psychopathic killer in 2014’s The Guest and this year starred in Disney musical Beauty And The Beast alongside Harry Potter star Emma Watson.

The Surrey-born actor, who plays Charles Dickens in the new festive film, adds: “Since going to the States I’ve been challenging myself in all different directions and have been lucky enough to find people who are prepared to see me try those things.”