Danny Dyer

“Babe, I’ve got a pair of tits,” Danny Dyer replies when I bring up the renewed sex symbol status his role in Rivals has sparked. We’ll agree to disagree.

When the adaptation of Jilly Cooper’s 1988 novel hit Disney back in October, nothing could have prepared the Football Factory star for the frenzy it would set off.

The actor’s portrayal of the sensitive, working-class-boy-turned-tech-millionaire Freddie Jones – and the character’s slow burn romance with Lizzie (played by Katherine Parkinson), struck the hearts (and according to plenty of thirsty tweets, loins) of viewers.

“I honestly thought everyone was going to laugh at me,” he says. “It wasn’t the best wig and I had this big old moustache. Well, I got it completely wrong, it went the opposite way – although tell you what, I do miss the ’tache.”

You and every Rivals viewer in the country, Danny. But in a series featuring a fully naked tennis playingRupert (Alex Hassell), a frequently shirtless Declan (Aidan Turner) and a power-hungry Tony (David Tennant), why does he think the nation is so fired up over Fred-Fred?

Well, his answer knocks me for six (even more so than the fact he’s called me “baby” three times in this interview and I’m ready to keel over).

Ok, but these two were my FAVOURITE part of #Rivalspic.twitter.com/CgDddLheDU

“Masculinity is so fucked that I think the idea of me playing a kind character is sexy, I don’t think kindness has been seen as something sexy for a long time,” he explains.

He’s not wrong though, is he? The bar for dating is so low it’s in hell and we’re at a stage where a man being genuinely compassionate is actually the sexiest thing they can do. And, bloody hell, Danny does it well.

“I’ve got two daughters, so I understand they don’t go for the kind, loyal, honest boy. They go for the unattainable boy that, you know, breaks their heart, makes them cry a lot, a bit like Rupert,” he adds.

“Then suddenly, you’ve got Fred, little Fred-Fred who is sort of powerful and clever and all these things, but also quite shy and he actually sees Lizzie for who she is.”

Throw into the mix that Danny himself was once the posterboy for badly-behaved lads, and the result? A side plot line becoming the sexiest thing about a show full of, well, sex.

But speaking of his daughters, what does his family make of the internet’s collective lusting over him?

“They laugh, especially Dani, she finds it hilarious – and my wife finds it hilarious as well, to be fair. They just didn’t get it, but then they saw Rivals and went, ‘Oh, we get it now’.”

They’re not the only ones – Danny’s recent incredible performance in Rivals has thrown his career and acting ability into the focus of many a think piece. Within days of the bonkbuster being released, it seemed that every other publication had an article voicing their surprise at the Harold Pinter protégé’s talent.

Yup, need we remind you that Danny was mentored by the famous playwright – and starred in three of his productions. So, where is all this........

© HuffPost