The star of US drama Prison Break, Wentworth Miller, talks exclusively to Mail online about filming the show, his love of scrabble, the perils of dating and why David Beckham is a fan.

What is it about Prison Break which has made it such a huge hit?

It’s a little bit of something for everyone - action, adventure and romance. It’s a story about a family and how far one man is willing to go to save a loved one. Plus I think the idea of prison is universally compelling. I don’t think anyone would want to be in my character’s shoes but they’d certainly like to go along for the ride.

Does it help that the show is shot inside a real prison?

Joliet State Pen was a functioning prison for over 150 years until 2002. It’s the most important character on the show. It lends the show an integrity that we couldn’t replicate on a sound stage. It helps to remind you of the reality of prison life.

How much research did you do into prison life before filming began?

There’s only so much you can do. It’s like the difference between researching a car accident and being in a car accident. I’ll never know what it’s like to really be an inmate. Working at a facility like Joliet does ground you. We do use the facility and all it has to offer. They planned my character’s escape via the real lay-out of the prison.

Have you met any former inmates?

We have many former inmates on set, playing extras. They’ve all come back which struck me as odd at first until I realised there was a sort of closure going on. People were returning to a place that had caused them a great deal of pain and suffering to achieve something positive by putting together a TV show.

Did they have any frightening stories for you about prison life?

Apparently when the inmates got bored or restless or wanted to antagonise the officers they would dance in and out of the cell doors as they were being automatically shut. Those doors won’t stop for anyone and they would close on an inmate from time to time. I did talk to a CO who said he would walk up and down the corridor after lockdown and see a severed finger here or there from someone who wasn’t quick enough.

How does the tattoo get put on you?

It’s four transfers that are pieced together like a puzzle. There’s alcohol to remove the mositure from the skin so the tattoo adheres, then there’s the transfer which you spray with water to peel it off then there’s a layer of sealant. It’s not painful, just a little uncomfortable because the transfer is tacky. Putting it on takes four hours and getting it off takes 45 minutes of scrubbing.

Apparently David Beckham is interested in copying your tattoo. Would you advise it?

I’ve heard he’s getting my tattoo. Isn’t that wild? It never occurs to me that celebrities or sports people or actors are watching my show. I only think of my friends and family tuning in. I think his idea to join up his tattoos will work quite nicely, but I don’t envy him having it done. That’s a lot of work and a lot of pain for a tattoo that size.

Do people treat you differently when you’ve got the tattoo on?

I’ve taken it home once or twice. I noticed that I got a better space in the line in Starbucks when I had my tattoo. People associate tattoos with a certain edge. Then I open my mouth and something completely different comes out.

What was it like working with Holly Vallance?

I understand she’s something of a pop star here. All I know is that she was able to turn on this incredibly sexy eastern European accent which I found very impressive. Accents are not one of my strengths so I really admire that. She’s a very pretty girl.

What’s her role in the show?

She is legally my wife in the show. She’s someone who I worked out a deal with to get her a green card and she’s going to help me access certain things on the outside. She’s working as a stripper. We have a couple of phone calls and two or three face to face scenes which take place in the conjugal area of the prison. This is network TV so there’s only so much you’ll be able to see.

Has your acting success been mirrored in your love life.

Not really. I’ve managed to squeeze in a few dates here and there, but I’m a workaholic and that’s where all of my time and energy goes. Everything else gets to come second. I love the idea of a wife and kids down the line but not right now.

Have you read all the internet fansites devoted to Wentworth Miller?

I did at first. If you’re at a party and there are two people across the room talking about you, naturally you’re curious as to what they are going to say, but there’s chance that you might overhear something negative.

What negative things have you heard?

I’ve read unkind reviews of my performance on-line and really taken them to heart almost as if I was getting feedback from my acting coach. Then I reminded myself that this could be written by some eleven-year-old in his mum’s basement who didn’t get his juice box that morning and he’s taking it out on me.

Have you received any interesting presents from your fans?

I’ve got a couple of scrabble sets. I’m a fan and I’ve mentioned that in several interviews and people have picked up on it. My highest score for one word has been somewhere in the seventies. They are travel sets so that I can use them on set which is very thoughtful. I’ve gotten a lot of fan mail from inmates. Apparently a signed headshot from a cast member on the show will get you a packet of smokes on the prison black market.

Do inmates approve of the show?

They do like it when they can watch it, but it’s often banned inside prison. I don’t think anyone would try to recreate what Michael’s doing, I don’t think realistically that they could. But still, they don’t want to give anyone ideas.

It’s a very physically demanding show - have there been any hair-raising moments?

No. We’re a very safe set. We have a highly trained team of stuntmen and we rehearse action scenes endlessly. If anything seems too dangerous we have several stuntmen who are my height and my shape and they step in at the last minute. Don’t get me wrong I walk away with my share of bruises and scrapes because it’s such an action orientated show.

How do you feel when members of the public approach you in the street?

I feel in that moment that I’m a diplomat for the show. They usually have totally positive stuff to say. But there is some awkwardness because on the one hand they know your face as well as they know their neighbours’ face, but they also realise when you are standing in front of them that you have nothing in common. We’re not used to walking up to total strangers and launching into conversations. So in that awkward moment it’s up to me to step into the breach, extend my hand and smooth things out.

What’s been the proudest moment of your life so far?

Professionally speaking the proudest moment was when I booked the Human Stain. I knew it had Nicole Kidman, Anthony Hopkins, Ed Harris and Gary Sinise on board and the director Robert Benton was an academy award winner for Kramer vs Kramer. When I got a place at the table with this array of talent, that was a proud moment. Slightly scary too, but Robert Benton is the sort of director who made you feel that you’re worth it whoever you are.

Have all those years you spent breaking into acting made you a better person now that you’ve hit the big time?

They certainly made me more grateful for the things I’m now able to achieve and the doors that will open up to me. I have had mental conversations with myself saying "Wouldn’t this be better if I was 23 rather than 33".

But the fact is I probably wouldn’t have booked the part in Prison Break if I’d been 23, I wouldn’t have had the experience of those 33 years to put into the role.

I’ve learned endurance, patience and gratitude in those years. I’ve been an overnight success ten years in the making. I really have an appreciation for how lucky I am.

If Prison Break hadn’t come along, would you still have been trying for parts in another ten years time?

It’s a frightening question. Every actor thinks to themselves, what if I wake up and I’m 45 and I’m still waiting tables, still waiting for that part and it never comes. I think I’d probably still be at it because acting isn’t something I can walk way from. I might be doing community theatre and waiting tables during the day. I’d still be at it in some way, shape or form.

What was the worst part-time job you’ve ever had to do?

I had a brief experience in the food industry. I was a bus boy in a Mexican restaurant in Arizona, scraping re-fried beans off people’s plates. It teaches you a bit of humility and the importance of a good deodorant.

Do you still keep up with your friends from your time as a student at Princeton?

College was where I made the most profound and lasting friendships. There’s no other time in life when you get to spend that kind of quality time with people. Those are the friends that I hope to have forever. I’m indebted to that time beause it exposed me to certain things that influenced my work as an actor.

What are your college pals doing now and what do they make of your job?

They’re all lawyers and doctors raising children and leading more traditional lives than I am. They all want to hear how Sarah Michelle Gellar was to film with [in his appearance in Buffy the Vampire Slayer].

What’s been the legacy of attending such a prestigious university as Princeton?

I’d been to places, seen things, developed a taste for music and art that inspires my work. You can base an entire character on one painting or one piece of music.

You were born in Chipping Norton in England. How does it feel to come back to your home country?

I’ve been back to Chipping Norton a number of times with my family before now. It’s like a picture postcard. My parents are both American but they lived here for a couple of years. They returned to the States when I was about one so I don’t have any real memories of it, but I do have my dual citizenship.

Did your father give you any tips on the English?

My father gave me a warning me before I came to London a few years back to shoot a mini-series. He said be careful of the English, they have this charming, manipulative rhetorical tool that they use to win conversations by ending sentences with a question. When I came over I went out for a drink with my co-stars David Thewlis and Anna Friel. I repeated my Dad’s advice to them. Anna Friel said, "We don’t do that.....do we?"

• Prison Break, season one part one, is released on May 29th.