Jamie Dornan admits stalking a woman on the Tube to prepare for The Fall

The actor said it was 'kind of exciting, in a really sort of dirty way'

Jamie Dornan as serial killer Paul Spector in The Fall (BBC)

Jamie Dornan has admitted he stalked a woman on the Tube in preparation for his role in The Fall.

The actor, who played a serial killer opposite Gillian Anderson in the drama, said he “kept his distance” and did it in a “really half-hearted way”.

He told the LA Times: “This is a really bad reveal: I, like, followed a woman off the train one day to see what it felt like to pursue someone like that.

“I really kept my distance…she got off a few stops earlier than I was planning so I said right, I have to commit to this. I followed her around a couple of street corners and then was like: what are you doing?”

He said it felt “kind of exciting, in a really sort of dirty way” but said he was not proud of himself for doing it.

He added that he thought he did learn something from his dubious bit of method acting.

“It was intriguing and interesting to enter that process of ‘what are you following her for’ and ‘what are you trying to find out?’” he said.

The BBC Two drama was critically acclaimed but has also been accused of glamorising violence against women.

The drama, which attracted more than 3 million viewers, revolved around Dornan's character attacking young, professional women.

The first series, directed by Jakob Verbruggen, was accused of being gratuitous for the way the camera lingered on the murderer's crimes.

The series’ writer Allan Cubitt admitted last year: “It may be that the camera lingered too intimately on certain things.”

Dornan’s turn in The Fall helped propel his career to starring as Christian Grey in the blockbuster adaptation of Fifty Shades of Grey earlier this year.

The record-breaking film also drew criticism from domestic violence charities for normalising abuse against women.

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