He later portrayed James Bond creator Ian Fleming in the 1990 television drama Spymaker: The Secret Life of Ian Fleming. In 1997, he appeared in a fantasy film (originally intended as a pilot episode for a longer series); playing the title role of Merlin in Merlin: The Quest Begins, directed by David Winning. He appeared in Faithful Dealing (2001) in London, an English Restoration Whodunit, produced by Dominic Madden. In 2003, he toured with a stage production of The Blue Room. In 2004, he was a main character in the children's show Shoebox Zoo and returned in the second series in September 2005.