James Norton has revealed that he broke his collarbone falling off a horse while rehearsing for the BBC's new historical drama King & Conqueror, leaving him in pain for months of filming. The actor, who plays Harold of Wessex, said the accident happened during a practice session and that he continued shooting with the injury.
Executive producer Baltasar Kormákur admitted he feared the series was ruined when Norton was hospitalised. 'I was at the hospital with him and there was like a moment - we're f***ed,' he said. Producer Kitty Kaletsky explained that the production schedule was rearranged, pushing the key 1066 battles to the end to allow Norton to recover.
Norton also accidentally bit an extra's nose during a scene where his character bites off an invader's nose. 'I literally bit his nose. The poor guy! I went through the skin,' Norton said. The extra arrived the next day with a heavily bandaged face. Despite debate over whether to keep the moment in the final edit, it was included.
The eight-part epic, co-starring Nikolaj Coster-Waldau as William of Normandy, was filmed in Iceland over five months. Norton, 40, said the collarbone 'recovers remarkably quickly - it just was quite painful for the latter half of the shoot.'
