Cork's most famous barman: Aidan O'Callaghan on his starring role in EastEnders 

The Innishannon actor on growing up in Co Cork, and the importance of getting the balance right when representing gay characters on screen 

Aidan O'Callaghan, centre, behind the bar at the Prince Albert in a scene from EastEnders. Also pictured are Max Bowden and Tony Clay. Pic: Amy Sharp - BBC Pictures

The Cork accent was the perfect finishing touch. When Innishannon actor Aidan O’Callaghan was cast in popular BBC soap EastEnders, the character he was to play was written as English. But O’Callaghan felt he could put his own gloss on the part – by giving barman Lewis Butler a Leeside inflection.

“The character wasn't written as Irish. He was written as kind of a newcomer. That for me was the perfect opportunity,” says O’Callaghan (33). “My agent saw it as a good opportunity to squeeze me in. The script itself is not written for an Irish character. But I have a close relationship with the directors. For example, if there’s a 'bruvver' or 'mate' in it, I speak to the director and they say, ‘no you can amend it’. It's such a collaborative process here at EastEnders. All the departments are involved in the process of building that character. For me, as an actor, it’s fantastic.”