Alexander Siddig is back as entrepreneur Philip Burton in the fifth series of time-travelling dinosaur drama Primeval, airing at 8pm on Tuesdays, exclusive to Watch.

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Now firmly in control of the ARC, entrepreneur Philip Burton finally sets his plans in motion…

Philip started to reveal his darker side at the end of Series 4. How does he unravel in this series?

“I think he realises he might not get his own way and this crew in the ARC won’t lie down. So he starts to twist the screw and starts to put the pressure on. All these kids are preoccupied with scaly lizards and Philip would rather see one of those nicely grilled on a plate in front of him, rather than sentimentally keeping them alive.

“As far as he’s concerned they’re getting in the way of his plan, and he doesn’t like the fact that they seem so obsessed with these things. He’s brilliant at getting what he wants so if that means the smile getting wiped off his face every once and a while, so be it.”

How does his relationship with the rest of the team alter in Series 5?

“Well, Danny turns up out of the blue and warns the team that Philip is bad news. Philip used to know Helen Cutter back in the day, and apparently she was a bad person! Philip never saw the bad side of her, and thought she had a good idea, which he took. Philip is all about ideas, and if he sees an idea that can be exploited, and possibly make tons of money from it, he’s going to go for it. He’s really a capitalist of the highest order.

“Danny tries to derail the process. When Danny went back into the anomaly, he could get back on track and get Connor back on-side again. Some of the team are now aware what Danny knew, and that’s sure to change opinions about him. Not that Philip would notice. Philip’s intentions seem to be driven by his own ambitions, and damn all the consequences.”

What can you tell us about New Dawn?

“He wants to give the world something that it badly needs; the answer to all mankind’s problems. He has a magic bullet, the secret of life, and he’s driven to make sure it succeeds. What qualifies something as a good idea is something that makes him a ton of money. If he could cure cancer, he would be doing it. But not for free.”

We’ve seen you play a variety of roles in your career, but is it more fun to play the baddies?

“Yes it is, because you’re exploring stuff you just can’t do in real life. It really comes down to the fact you’re exercising something that you just can’t do elsewhere. Unless you’re a nutcase. Thankfully I’m not a nutcase!”

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