James Nesbitt has admitted that it was "frustrating" working on The Hobbit.

The actor, 49, was cast as the dwarf Bofur in Peter Jackson's movie trilogy, with the final film out in December.

James said that the experience of working on the three movies was "incredible", even if his role was small.

"There will only ever be 13 dwarves in The Hobbit - and I was one of them," the Cold Feet actor told Radio Times magazine. "If I had my time again, would I do it? Yeah, I would."

But he added: "A t times it was frustrating. Just in terms of the acting, in terms of what you were given the opportunity to do."

He told the magazine: "I thought I was gonna be (in it more). But that was one of the difficulties - there wasn't a script per se before we agreed to it. But then there are an awful lot of people to keep happy."

The Monroe star said of the third, forthcoming film: "I think there's a lot more for everyone to do. And my kids are in it - they play Bard the Bowman's daughters. They've got nice parts."

James said that he took a different approach in his new role as Tony Hughes, a father struggling to deal with the disappearance of his five-year-old on a family holiday, in BBC drama The Missing.

"I tried not to be social with the crew or cast. I would go out and eat by myself... I pounded the streets like Tony did, went into bars to have a couple of drinks. So, very much his world - because Tony was totally alone," he said.

He said of the drama: "A lot of people have mentioned the Madeleine McCann case. But it's much more of a thriller than that.

"That's not to say there aren't thriller elements in any child abduction. But it's the notion of dropping a pebble in water and the ripples... the ramifications are huge.

"It's not just about the father and mother and immediate family. It's about other people's lives being affected over a course of time. That brings the thriller element."