Poldark’s George Warleggan: Jack Farthing’s Career And Projects Explored

Jack Farthing brought the villain George Warleggan to life in Poldark. He started playing the role in 2015 and continued across all five seasons of the BBC drama until 2019. His performance as the wealthy, ambitious banker was a major point in his career.

Farthing built a detailed character. He showed a cold, ruthless side in George’s business moves and personal schemes against Ross Poldark. He also showed a quiet sadness and deep insecurity. This mix made the villain more than just a simple bad guy. The role required him to be a constant source of conflict in the story of 18th-century Cornwall.

Since Poldark ended, Jack Farthing has taken on many different roles in film and television. He has played historical figures and modern characters. His career shows he is not limited to one type of role.

Jack Farthing’s Early Life And Training

Jack Farthing was born on October 14, 1985, in North London. His interest in acting started early. He attended two independent schools: The Hall School in Hampstead and Westminster School in central London.

For his higher education, Farthing first studied History of Art at St Catherine’s College, Oxford. He then decided to pursue acting professionally. He trained at the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art (LAMDA). This combination of academic and practical training helped shape his approach to building characters.

In a 2019 interview, Farthing talked about his time at drama school. He described it as an “exposing” process that involved “cutting through your armour.” He said this was good preparation for acting, which requires being open and emotional.

Career Breakthrough With Blandings And Poldark

Before becoming famous as George Warleggan, Jack Farthing had his first major television role. From 2013 to 2014, he played Freddie Threepwood in the BBC period comedy Blandings. The role was that of a lighthearted aristocratic character. This part demonstrated his skill with comedy and timing. It also helped him get noticed for more dramatic work.

The production company behind Blandings was also making Poldark. They approached Farthing for the part of George Warleggan. At first, he was not sure he was right for the role. The character in the original novels is described as very tall and broad-shouldered, which did not match Farthing’s own build.

“I thought, ‘This is crazy, I’m not right for this,’” Farthing said about his initial reaction to being considered for George Warleggan. “I went in a few times and it worked.”

He decided to focus on George’s inner life rather than his physical description. He built the character around a core of insecurity and a feeling of not being good enough. This helped make George believable and complex.

Building The Character Of George Warleggan

George Warleggan is a central figure in the Poldark series. He is the main rival to the hero, Ross Poldark, played by Aidan Turner. George came from a family that started with little. His grandfather was a blacksmith. His father and uncle became bankers and built their wealth. This background drove George’s desire for high social status and his deep resentment toward the established Poldark family.

Jack Farthing played George across 43 episodes from 2015 to 2019. He showed the character’s many sides:

• Ruthless Ambition: George often used his banking power to ruin rivals financially.
• Social Climbing: He married Elizabeth Poldark, partly to gain a respected family name.
• Personal Insecurity: Despite his wealth, he always felt looked down upon by the traditional gentry.
• Capacity for Love: His genuine, though complicated, love for his wife Elizabeth was a key part of his character.

In the final season, George’s story takes a darker turn. After Elizabeth’s death, he struggles with intense grief and hallucinations. His mental state begins to decline. Farthing had to show this painful, unraveling side of the character while still maintaining his pride and sharpness.

Major Film And Television Roles After Poldark

Since Poldark ended, Jack Farthing has chosen a wide variety of roles. This shows his range as an actor and his desire to avoid being typecast.

Notable Film Roles:

• Spencer (2021): Farthing played Charles, Prince of Wales, opposite Kristen Stewart’s Princess Diana. This role required him to portray a well-known living figure during a tense period in the royal family’s history.
• The Lost Daughter (2021): He appeared in this psychological drama film directed by Maggie Gyllenhaal.
• Love Wedding Repeat (2020): This Netflix romantic comedy reunited Farthing with his Poldark co-star Eleanor Tomlinson, who played Demelza.
• The Riot Club (2014): Earlier in his career, he played George Balfour in this film about an elite and dangerous Oxford University dining club.

Notable Television Roles:

• Rain Dogs (2023): Farthing played Florian Selby in this HBO/BBC comedy-drama. His performance earned him a nomination for an Independent Spirit Award for Best Supporting Performance in a New Scripted Series.
• Chloe (2022): He took a role in this BBC psychological thriller series.
• The Serial Killer’s Wife (2023): Farthing appeared in this suspense series.
• Towards Zero (2025): He starred in this BBC adaptation of an Agatha Christie novel. He played Thomas Royde, the estranged nephew of a matriarch played by Angelica Huston.

Working With Co-Stars And On-Set Insights

The dynamic between George Warleggan and Ross Poldark was central to the show. Aidan Turner, who played Ross, became widely known for the role. Before Poldark, Turner was known for playing the dwarf Kíli in The Hobbit film trilogy and the vampire Mitchell in Being Human.

Farthing has spoken positively about the experience of working on Poldark. He shared some of his favorite moments from the series in an interview as the final season aired. These included:

• The dramatic French jailbreak sequence, which he called “proper swashbuckling stuff.”
• The sad scenes involving the deaths of children, which he found very moving to film.
• The constant back-and-forth battles between George and Ross. He noted it was “obviously nice” on the rare occasions when George managed to get the upper hand.

He also mentioned a fun behind-the-scenes fact. Farthing managed to take home one of George’s signature tailored black suits from the show. He joked that actors are “very good at stealing things”.

Jack Farthing’s Personal Glimpse

In interviews, Jack Farthing comes across as thoughtful and modest, quite different from the character he played. He has shared a few personal details:

• He is in a relationship with actress and writer Hanako Footman.
• He has an unusual talent for imitating bird calls. He once demonstrated this in an interview so well it was compared to “a nightingale warbling in your garden at dusk”.
• He has a cat, and as a child, he accidentally jumped on one of his family’s cats and broke its leg—a memory he said still haunts him.

Farthing has also been open about the lack of diversity in British acting. He has said that the profession is supposed to mirror the world, but if it only represents a small percentage of people, it is not doing its job. He believes the solution must start with making training more accessible.

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