The executive producers of Merlin have teased the main characters’ journeys in the show’s forthcoming fifth series during a Q&A at last week’s press screening of its first episode, attended by CultBox.

“Every character in this, we try to push on quite a big journey,” explained Julian Murphy.

“Angel [Coulby, who plays Guinevere] is a very developed and mature queen. Morgana is a much more damaged character, and that’s taking her to a more extreme place than she’s been before. Arthur is consciously a king, and he’s being the King Arthur of legend: he’s good, he has a sense of justice, a morality that he brings… but he’s also got his flaws, and we will bring those out too; he’s still learning that job. Merlin, too, is much older… he’s not the innocent naive Merlin that he once was – cos he can’t be.”

“He still has a kind heart,” added Johnny Capps, “but there’s experience now. The dilemmas that he’s facing, and living in a world where he’s had to keep his identity quiet, has had an effect on him. There’s still the fun that the two characters [Merlin and Arthur] had, and their comic dynamic, but they’ve sort of moved on as well. The way they relate to each other is slightly ‘older’ now, and they’ve almost – in some situations, as the series develops – become equals…”

What would you like to see happen to the main characters in Series 5? Let us know below…

> Order the Series 5 Volume 1 DVD on Amazon.

Watch the Series 5 trailer…