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I enjoy being called handsome even though it’s hysterical. Bring it on!
Sun's sexiest man Benedict Cumberbatch says he is baffled by sex symbol status

DECIDING who is Britain’s sexiest man is elementary for Sun readers – Sherlock star Benedict Cumberbatch has now clinched the title two years in a row.But unlike his super-smart detective character, the modest actor hasn’t a clue as to why he has attained sex symbol status.
Despite being crowned 2012’s hottest bloke in Britain and emerging triumphant again in our poll last week, he says: “I’m still processing this strange misperception.
“I suppose I’ll have to find a way to deal with the strain. I enjoy being considered handsome, even though I think it’s hysterical.”
And while Benedict might not be comfortable with being seen as a heart-throb, he admits that being sexy isn’t bad for business.

He says: “Work-wise, it builds a momentum, which means I’ve got the most fantastic opportunities — or at least, doors open to prove myself at the next level, and that attention has been a huge help. As long as it helps me find good roles, my response is, ‘Bring it on!’”And the roles certainly aren’t showing any sign of drying up for 36-year-old Benedict.
His Hollywood stardom is now well established. Since he first played Sherlock on TV in 2010, he has appeared in major Tinseltown productions such as War Horse in 2011, last year’s The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey and Star Trek Into Darkness, which is out next week.
But Benedict is determined to stay grounded. He says: “You need to treat it as a great adventure. It can get quite overwhelming if you start really believing in your own press, good or bad, and you could go a little bit insane.

Trunk hunk ... Benedict Cumberbatch“As long as you’ve got those around you who are travelling with you spiritually or physically, whether it’s your other half or your friends and family, you’ve just got that base that’s making sure you are checking in with who you are and that they know you’re all right.”
He claims his friends’ reaction to his new-found superstar status has been “interesting”, adding: “I read a piece in The New York Times where James McAvoy was quoted as saying, ‘Oh, Benedict doesn’t need to fear the media or his fans or his new profile. He just needs to fear actors who will be looking at him with envy and want to cut his legs off’.

Winner ... last year's poll“Maybe that’s the case, but most of my friends who are actors are just really, really thrilled with what I’ve got. It’s kind of humbling, actually. And it’s nice because I’m not as good-looking as James.”
Modest Benedict has also had to adjust to being constantly spotted on the street.
He says: “It’s a very strange thing. You feel recognised, you feel people looking at you, there’s that whole aspect of it.
“Sort of being on display when you’re not professionally being asked to is very odd. Although it is part of the job so you kind of have to find a way of doing it.”
Benedict grew up in the plush west London borough of Kensington and was educated at £32,000-a-year Harrow School.
His upper-crust background has served him well in his numerous roles in period dramas, such as last year’s TV mini-series Parade’s End and 2007 film Atonement.

He jokes: “My look suits a period drama... although some have likened the shape of my head to that of Sid the sloth from Ice Age.” On top of an excellent education, Benedict has a top-notch acting pedigree as the son of stage veterans Timothy Carlton — full name Timothy Carlton Cumberbatch — and Wanda Ventham. But before he first set foot on a film set, he intended becoming a LAWYER.
He says: “My parents worked incredibly hard to give me a very privileged education so I could do anything but be as stupid as them and become an actor.
“Unfortunately I didn’t pay any attention, like a lot of children, to my parents’ wise words.

“I was learning to be a barrister, choosing my A-levels around potentially doing Oxbridge and all the rest of it. But then I encountered loads of other people on the same course who said it’s so much down to chance and luck. And I thought, ‘Well, why am I giving up on my primary dream of being an actor to work doubly hard to do something as an alternative to what I really still want to do?’”But then Benedict had to break the news to his parents.
He continues: “They wanted me to do a grown-up job and be a barrister but they understood my decision.
“I was at university, playing Salieri in Peter Shaffer’s play Amadeus, when my dad told me, ‘You’re better than I ever was or will be. You’ll have a good time doing this. I’m going to support you’.
“It was a huge thing for a father to say to his son. It was very humbling and moving. One of the reasons I get out of bed in the morning and try to do my best each day is to make them proud.”






