When it comes to starting a new job, background research is generally advised. It's a tip that clearly passed Paapa Essiedu by, given the actor has now revealed just how little he knew about forthcoming BBC drama The Capture prior to signing on as its lead.

"Ben Shannon, our amazing showrunner, emailed me telling me a bit about the character and about season two - I hadn't actually watched season one at this point," confesses Essiedu.

"In fact, I didn't actually watch season one until we were halfway through the shoot. I remember watching it and being like, 'Thank God, it's really good'."

Best known for his roles in I May Destroy, Press and Gangs Of London, the 32-year-old Emmy and Bafta-nominated star is set to enter the slippery world of politics this time around.

Essiedu, a former Royal Shakespeare Company actor, takes on the role of Government Minister Isaac Turner - noting that news events can often be stranger than fiction when it comes to Westminster.

"Some of the stuff we're experiencing today in our headlines feel like they'd be at home in our programme," admits the actor.

Shadowing "certain unamended politicians" as part of his preparation for the role, Essiedu says his peak behind the doors of Westminster was a "really helpful" experience, allowing for a different perspective on the political arena.

Admitting to the "curated appearances" of many politicians, the actor describes his excitement at being able to delve into the "underbelly of Whitehall".

Quick to note the "resilience" required to remain in power as a serving MP - "or at least to be a career politician" - the actor freely admits "the tides can turn against you very quickly".

"I don't know if it's naivety, but I think a lot of current politicians have got a 'fake it 'til you make it' kind of attitude," says Essiedu.

"I think Isaac's no different - in the fact that he is confident and he does feel like he knows what he's doing. And there's real strategy and purpose to the way he goes about his business."

Arriving on BBC One later this month, series two of the conspiracy-laden show takes a panic-inducing look at the blurred lines separating the digital world from reality.

Led by Holliday Grainger as principled Detective Inspector Rachel Carey, series one centred around Special Forces Lance Corporal Shaun Emery (Callum Turner), who after being acquitted of war crimes in Afghanistan, was then accused of the kidnap and murder of his barrister based on damning CCTV evidence.

Except, the evidence proved to be less than reliable. And with DI Carey later uncovering a complex conspiracy linked to facial recognition software and a secret government taskforce, series two has been a long time coming.

Now, with the forthcoming episodes positioning themselves as a seamless continuation of the first series, viewers should prepare for yet more gripping twists and turns.

Best known for her roles in Cinderella and Great Expectations, Grainger describes how her character Rachel "had her eyes opened to the corruption she didn't believe was there" during series one. Now, as she prepares to reprise the role, Grainger says the palpable sense of unease within the show is set to continue.

"She's been left believing that possibly her life is in danger. And so she's paranoid and anxious and distrustful of everyone. It's a very lonely place to be, I think," says Grainger, 34.

A series that opens with a Chinese dissident being shot dead in his apartment, we discover the building's CCTV footage has suspiciously been wiped. And as security fears escalate, attention switches to the MP he was working with as part of a deal to introduce Chinese facial recognition software to the UK - that MP being Isaac Turner.

Once again written by The Missing and Cyberbully director Ben Chanan, the creative admits that series two always looked to be something of a challenge.

"I carried the first series around in my head for about five years before I made it. And then suddenly, they wanted the second one," smiles Chanan.

Reflecting on the show's influences, Chanan freely admits that many of the details contained within the new episodes were lifted from the cutting room floor.

"Funnily enough, when I first wrote what we call the 'vomit draft', episode one of season one, it wasn't a soldier, it was a politician," says Chanan.

"I got to the end of that vomit draft and I thought 'who cares about politicians? I need someone people care about'. And I realised, if we make him a soldier, the whole story makes sense."

Admitting that even a figure closely linked to national security can be "skewered" by disinformation, Chanan says that Turner "doesn't even realise yet that his own intelligence services are involved".

With security taking centre-stage, you'd be forgiven for thinking Essiedu's real-world browsing habits may have altered as a result of the show. In reality, however, the actor says that much of his online security choices come down to convenience.

"I used to have one of those plasters on your laptop webcam, just in case like Steve Jobs cared," says the actor, before admitting he accepts his computer's automated password suggestions.

"Every single time I'm like, 'I really should come up with my own password and just write it down'. But I can't be bothered to do that.

"And so we're kind of worldly enslaved to technology in a way that is comfortable and uncomfortable at the same time. So, I twitch as much as the next person, but I feel as reliant on it as the next person as well."

The Capture, BBC1, Sunday, 9pm.