Sir Ian McKellen is one of Britain's finest actors. The sexagenarian has come a long way since making his movie debut in A Touch Of Love in 1969. Many years treading the boards have given way to lucrative roles in two of the most successful franchises of recent years - as Gandalf in The Lord Of The Rings, and Magneto in the X-Men series. After bidding farewell to Rings, he'll next be seen in David Mackenzie's Brit drama Asylum.

To what do you attribute the phenomenal appeal of The Lord Of The Rings trilogy?

I think people love these characters. It's the characters and not us as actors who are the beloved people. Really, we're the people who made the story of The Lord Of The Rings and I think audiences have a genuine love for these movies. They've become classics already.

You were nominated for an Oscar for the first film and some say you may well get nominated again this year. How do you feel about that?

I did my best! I had a wonderful script. I had an amazing director and a wonderful part, and so this has been an actor's dream really. And doing it all in that amazing country of New Zealand was in itself a privilege. You know, Gandalf was really a very special job.

How satisfying is the third film for you?

Well, you don't need me to tell you how The Lord Of The Rings ends but basically it comes to a very satisfactory conclusion, but not for all the characters. There's a lot of emotion in the final scenes when you discover what's going to happen to each of the members of the Fellowship.

How hard is it to leave Gandalf behind?

We finished principal photography in New Zealand three years ago and we've nipped back each year to do a little bit extra, so it's been a gradual letting go. It's only three weeks since I put the last Gandalf grunt down on the soundtrack in London, down the line to Wellington. So who knows? There's always The Hobbit to be filmed!

And what about King Kong?

Well, you ask Peter! I keep dropping the hint that I should be in King Kong and I hope if I say it often enough, he'll eventually take the hint! We'll see.