Blake Ritson in The Romantics

Before the joyful return of slick nonsense TV (that's CSI:NY, now having fully abandoned its muted pallette of old, plus wonderful L&O:CI with Private Pyle), we caught most of the final episode of The Romantics. Constant interjections of dog-chewing-wasp-faced Peter Ackroyd aside - has he got one of those deals like Alan Yentob that demand he has to be gratuitously in almost every shot? - it was worth watching, albeit very flawed in its telling of the Romantic period.

It was watchable despite the absence of David Tennant (obviously just the one day off from Doctor Who then), not least because Cloud and I came to the same conclusion about one of the performers: namely, Blake Ritson.

Ritson played PB Shelley (scroll cast list). Watching him, I felt this strange sensation that his features were rather graphic: that is, rather like looking at a graphic novel piece of art work. I was thinking this idea through, when Cloud interrupted:

"You know, if ever they were looking for someone to play The Sandman, he'd be right for it"

My God! He was right. And though it is hard to put my finger on exactly which of the many illustrated incarnations of Gaiman's character Ritson most resembles - this, from the most recent collection, although beyond the canonical 10 volumes, catches something of Ritson's inhabiting of the character - there is definitely something there. Maybe it's the hair, perhaps the straightness of his nose, the angularity of his features as they were photographed for The Romantics: but there is something in his look that reminds me of Dream.

Somebody cast him...