(Cover) - -No story type selected- - Rhys Ifans has described how he tried to absorb Peter Cooks mannerisms when playing him.

The 43-year-old Welsh actor is known for his roles in hit movies such as Notting Hill and Enduring Love.

One of the stars fondest memories is playing the late English comedian Peter Cook in 2004 film Not Only But Always, although he admits it was a struggle to make his performance credible.

I could do a pretty good impression of him, but thats only valuable for five minutes at a time, he told Empire.

The luxury was that hed left such a body of work behind that I could access to try and absorb him. The difficulty was that there was very little footage of him being him. So there was some detective work involved, sifting through this huge body of characters.

Rhys also confessed that he was originally wary of the role, despite being such a massive fan of Peter, who passed away in 1995. In the end, the chance to portray a lifetime hero made him overcome any doubts.

I kept saying no because I didnt want to f**k up, he explained.

But of course I eventually caved in. (C) Cover Media