Real life of The Way's Michael Sheen - turning down Arsenal FC, Jack Nicholson family link and 'difficult' Kate Beckinsale split

The highly anticipated new BBC drama The Way hits our screen this week. And with Michael Sheen as the director and co-creator of the three-parter, it is little wonder viewers have been eagerly waiting for a release date for the series.

The Welsh actor, 55, is one of the main driving forces behind The Way, which has been filmed in Port Talbot and features an all-star Welsh cast. The series, written by James Graham, is available to watch on BBC iPlayer from today (Monday, February 19) and is said to "tell the story of an ordinary family caught up in an extraordinary chain of events that ripple out from their hometown".

It is also described as an "emotional and darkly humorous story about what it means to be faced with impossible choices". The drama has also been created by Adam Curtis and developed and executive produced by Bethan Jones. Sheen also plays a role in the drama.

READ MORE: The Way on BBC: What it's about, how many episodes and who's in the c

Speaking about his latest project on The Graham Norton Show on Friday, February 9 he explained the difficulties of filming The Way in his hometown, saying: "I loved it. Some people say the hardest thing about directing is being asked so many questions all the time, but that's the bit I like. I am a control freak and I want it to be my decision. I really enjoyed it.

"The difficulty of filming in my hometown (Port Talbot) was that while I was in the middle of directing so many people I know were coming up for a chat or asking me to fix things in the town like the state of the bins."

Director Sam Mendes has previously described Sheen as "a stage creature" and attributed that to the actor's Welsh roots: He said: "I'm serious. He's Welsh in the tradition of Anthony Hopkins