Bodyguard star plans to escape fame in Scotland

The star of hit BBC drama Bodyguard has said he wants to escape the limelight and buy a home on the Scottish west coast.

Richard Madden plays David Budd in the show. Picture: PA

Richard Madden, 32, revealed during an interview with the Daily Star that he dreams of swapping fame for a more private life in his native Scotland.

The actor, who shot to fame several years ago as Robb Stark in Game of Thrones, is finding Bodyguard’s national success difficult to deal with and admits the serenity of the west coast looks appealing.

“My aim is to buy a little place on the west coast to escape,” he said.

“It’s so gorgeous. I am also my happiest up there. It would be so quiet too.”

Richard was brought up in the village of Elderslie in Renfrewshire, with his parents Richard Snr and Pat and siblings.

In Bodyguard, Madden stars as the troubled security agent David Budd, who is tasked with protecting the UK foreign secretary played by Keeley Hawes.

Madden revealed he is concerned about people taking him seriously as an actor now after becoming something of a sex symbol off the back of the series.

He said: “I worry about it affecting my job. If people go, ‘Oh, you know, he’s that hunky thing’, that undermines that actually I am an actor.”

The Bodyguard finale aired last Sunday on BBC One, attracting more than 10.4 million viewers at its peak. It has been named as the broadcaster’s most successful drama serial in a decade.