A couple of posts ago I wondered whether I was in love with Mr. Rochester or Toby Stephens or both. Now I know that without Toby there would be no Hot Rochester so it must due to the Toby Effect! Then again, Toby Stephens is such a talented, charismatic fellow that I could sit riveted while he reads the Yellow Pages. I am not saying that because he’s hot – that goes without saying – but he really is a wonderful actor, one of those who can completely disappear into his roles. He is consistently good, even when the project isn’t, but thankfully he chooses to work on more good projects than bad. Believe me, I know because I’ve watched more than half a dozen of them in the past month!

Let’s see…

• Jane Eyre (no need to say anymore about this – I pay complete and utter homage to it)
• Cambridge Spies (brilliant series in every respect)
• Best Man (confusing piece of drabble but Toby is so very hot in it)
• Terkle (a cartoon and he voices a smooth, hippy substitute teacher – unfortunately the cartoon itself isn’t so amusing)
• The Rising (absolutely incredible as the Hindi-speaking Scottish officer in this Bollywood epic)
• Die Another Day (crap, except for Toby and the fencing scene)
• The Tenant of Wildfell Hall (where I first noticed Toby with a Yorkshire accent, ultra yum)

The fact that I’ve bothered to seek out all these movies is very telling. It means that I’ve crossed into ‘fangirl’ territory where Toby is concerned and have become (gasp) a ‘Tobette’!! That’s the term favoured by self-confessed Toby Stephens obsessives – appreciators – like myself!

Unfortunately being a Tobette can be a very isolating experience. Can you believe that out of 8 million people in this city I am only one of a (known) handful that knows the true worth of this man? Even my own friends don’t seem to see where the attraction is, either preferring Darcy to Rochester (duh, Darcy needed a lake to be sexy in; Rochester just needs that delicious smile), or failing to notice him at all!

Which led me to ask, why is it that women have a bias towards either dark-haired (of the Hugh Jackman kind, for example) or fair-haired men (Brad Pitt as an example)? Why can’t guys of an autumn complexion (as Toby definitely is) be classed as sexy? I mean, look at this photo – who cannot fail to call him delectable here?? Not me – I nearly fell off my chair when I first saw it and I’m still recovering. Corr…

Well, I can take consolation in the fact that I am not the only person on earth who finds him attractive. 2,000+ blog entries and a 600 member forum can’t be wrong!

So as a final homage to this amazing man, I present to you this video. I posted the link before but this really needs to be embedded and truly enjoyed.