Gary Oldman signed up for Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy so he could be an Englishman.

The British actor - best known for his eccentric roles including Sirius Black in the Harry Potter series and Commissioner Gordon in the latest Batman films - was delighted to leave his Hollywood home to head for the UK to work on the project because he felt like it was "proper."

"It is always a lot of fun coming back to England and doing things like Harry Potter and Batman, but really they are fantasy worlds, so it is nice to come and do something like Tinker Tailor, something proper. Actually, it was also nice to come back and play an Englishman."

He also admits another reason he was glad to play the role of spy George Smiley in the film was because of the all-star cast: "I was just very flattered to be asked to play George Smiley at all. I mean, really, just to be involved in a film like this would've been fantastic. You've got John Hurt, Colin Firth, Kathy Burke, all these terrific actors, and it's just a delicious part."