Actor Aidan Turner says he 'does not feel objectified' by Poldark's topless scenes

Poldark actor Aidan Turner does not feel "objectified" by the attention he has received as a result of removing his shirt in the popular TV programme.

Instead Turner, who plays Ross Poldark in the Cornish period drama, said the focus on the show's topless scenes was "hilarious".

The Irish actor was quoted by The Times as saying:

The 33-year-old delighted fans in series one of Poldark by baring his chest while scything.

Series two has seen him remove his shirt while working in the tin mines.

In his interview with the Times, Turner said: "If he [Ross Poldark] is down the mine, he is hammering away - on Sunday night we saw it - so it wouldn't make sense with a shirt on. It would look odd. In those days as well!"

The actor, whose credits include the Hobbit films, also revealed he enjoyed painting, but said that his paintings, unlike his torso, would be staying under wraps.

Turner's comments sit in contrast to those made by fellow heart-throb Game of Thrones star Kit Harington, who in May said that male film and television stars were the subject of "demeaning" sexism.