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Did you want any other role on this show?

No. When I read the script, I thought it was interesting on so many levels. I remember when I first met Matt, I said to him "you know what, I will carry garbage if I have to, I just want to work on this show". I was really happy to be hired for the part of Don Draper.

Was the hiring process long and arduous?

It was long and arduous. It was a big risk to hire an unknown actor to be the lead but, obviously, it has paid off for them.

Matt has a very specific idea of what the show is and the way he tells the story. I went through six or seven auditions.

What do you make of Don Draper and do you know anyone like him?

Maybe not as extreme an example as Don, but we are in the business of telling a story and things are heightened for dramatic purposes.

I think everybody has a situation in their life where they wish they could be somebody else, or they are not happy with their wife or their job. These are real conflicts and real issues that people deal with.

The fact that they are setting it in this heightened world of advertising, or Madison Avenue, New York in the 1960s, all that kind of serves as window dressing. It is the relationship issues and the conflicts that are all very real.

On paper Don is a womaniser, con, drinker and a liar. Why do you think the viewers like him so much?

I think it's because you empathise with him. At the core of everybody is a sense of humanity and I think that Don has that. He certainly has a sense of vulnerability, he just doesn't show it to anybody else. We as a viewer get to see it, but very few other people in his world get to see it.

Are you surprised that it took so long to get your big break?

I am surprised it happens to anybody, especially now in the changing mediascape that exists. It is just harder and harder to get a job.

When I first came to LA and would walk into an audition room, there were 40 people who look exactly like you. You would just think "oh s***".

It is challenging and rejection is just part of the deal. There comes a point however that you make the decision to keep working and trying, or to pack it up and leave.

I was doing okay before, but when this kind of thing comes along, it is the brass ring. It is a game changer. The fact that it is really good and I really like it is a bonus. I just got lucky, incredibly lucky.

You are being hailed as the next George Clooney. How are you coping with that kind of attention?

It is all very subjective and it can all change in a minute. To use a very overused phrase, "it is what it is". It is a nice way of complimenting somebody and I certainly do take it as a compliment. I would trade careers with George Clooney in a heartbeat. I would certainly trade houses with him, especially if he threw in the one in Italy. It is a tremendous compliment and I hope to have a career like his.

How do you deal with the attention that you get from the TV show?

The fortunate thing is that I don't walk around in an exquisitely tailored suit with my hair perfect, so I can sometimes slip through unnoticed. Very few people recognise me. The show gets attention, but I have been very fortunate that I have been able to fly under the radar, so I really haven't had to deal with it.

Are you getting other offers for movies and TV shows?

Contractually, I am not allowed to work on another TV show but I have been talking to some people about movies.

You probably don't have to audition anymore. You do meetings, right?

Exactly. It is definitely easier.

Do you know where your character is going in the second season?

At the end of the first season there was this sort of revelation that Don isn't who he says he is. In season two we will explore – and it's not Don's character – how did these people get to where they are now.

There is this significant gap from this man assuming a different identity, to where he is now. How did he get to become who he is? How did he get into advertising? How did he meet his friend Roger? Why does he relate to Peggy so well? How did he meet his wife?

There are so many questions to answer and, as we move into the second season, we start finding out more but, like most questions do, they lead to other questions.

And everybody is still moving through time, so these relationships are not static. They are constantly changing, either growing or in certain instances shrinking or dying.

How is season two different?

I think tonally it is very similar. If the first season could be described as the revelation of and finding out about Don Draper, then I think the second season would be how he got here. Tonally they are very similar and we are dealing with many of the same issues, relationships, infidelity and work while still being this human being. They are all great stories.

What are the challenges of playing this sort of character with the womanising, drinking, smoking, etc?

We are very fortunate that none of it is real. If I had to drink and smoke as much as Don I would be dead.

It is incredibly challenging. You are in a different world, and it is a very accurate representation of that world. You have to make it look like you know what you are doing.

And the clothes are very tight, not like we wear them today, although I continually thank the powers that be that I am not a woman on this show. I don't know how they do it with all of the undergarments that they have to wear.

Don has a very classic look. Do you enjoy shooting all these period pieces?

I do enjoy the style, it is great. There is something to be said about well-tailored, beautiful clothes.

Do you have to keep your hair a certain way for that show?

I usually wear my hair a little longer and kind of messy, but for the show I get a haircut every week. You have to maintain a look, but the style is great and I am glad it is coming back into fashion. It seems it is having a bit of a resurgence in modern culture. It is good. I am a fan.

Everybody looks great in the show. We watch all the secretaries in the bullpen in the office at Sterling Cooper and everybody looks good.

Were you curious to go and see a real advertising agency?

I have seen them. They don't dress as well as we do.