From the Guardian:
Ever since Milton gave Satan all the best lines, the allure of villains in literature has been widely recognised. I'm certainly not immune to their charms. When I was little, for instance, my chief heroine was Cruella de Vil. Similarly, Naughty Amelia Jane was my most dog-eared Blyton. (Katy Carr, Jo March and Anne Shirley, meanwhile, seemed to me at their best at the beginning of their respective novels - when they were untamed and disobedient.)
I don't agree with all of her picks -- we all know how I feel about Heathcliff, for one, and even though it might make me horribly insensitive, I'm not on Team Bertha, either... -- but the question is a fun one. I saw an interview with Patrick Stewart ages ago in which he talked quite a bit about playing heroes vs. villains. He said most actors preferred villains because, assuming they're written well, they're much more interesting. I buy that.
So. I love Sir Brian de Bois-Guilbert. He's way (way way way) more fun than Ivanhoe. Aaron Echolls from Veronica Mars, especially in the second season. The villain from A Drowned Maiden's Hair*. And I always love anti-heroes -- like Dexter the Crime-Fighting Serial Killer. Your faves?
*I don't want to give the identity away to anyone who hasn't read it yet. Why haven't you read it yet?
Sir Brian just reminds me of Edward Eager's Knight's Castle, as I've never read Ivanhoe, but that's good enough for me.
If Snape turns out to be a villain (although I don't believe he is) he would definitely be up there on the list.
Posted by: jessmonster | 25 April 2007 at 01:29 PM
Ooo, I remember that I was almost in love with Sir Brian de Bois-Guilbert when he was played by Ciarán Hinds in the 1997 TV ministries. And I have a thing for the Mummy. :)
Posted by: Sarah I. | 25 April 2007 at 02:00 PM
Archie from THE CHOCOLATE WAR.
Posted by: Brian F. | 25 April 2007 at 02:09 PM