UK Press Association, 30 December 2009

Wallander's Sarah Smart has revealed Kenneth Branagh asked her to help him play the TV detective.

The 32-year-old actress stars as Swedish detective Anne-Britt Hoglund alongside the award-winning actor and director in the BBC adaptation of Henning Mankell's novels.

Sarah revealed: "He's so humble, because he said, 'You've done so much TV and I've done hardly any, so you'll have to help me out here' - I was like 'Yeah, that's really sweet, but you don't need any help!'."

She gushed about working with Branagh: "He's lovely! Brilliant! He really is a fan of the books, he knows them inside out. So working with him was great, and he's a massive team player because he's worked on every side of the camera."

The new series of Wallander begins on BBC One on January 3, and Sarah revealed: "The way people die is quite surprising! There's more gore, lots more bodies and stuff. I quite like all that though, the special effects are amazing! It's shocking but interesting."