#95th regiment

Sean Bean as Lieutenant Richard Sharpe in Sharpe's Rifles (1993).

This was the first of several British television movies based on the Richard Sharpe series of novels by Bernard Cornwell. The novels followed the adventures of a tough, scrappy British soldier, promoted from the ranks to an officer by Sir Arthur Wellesley (the future Duke of Wellington), during the Napoleonic Wars in Europe.

The telefilms were extremely popular and made Bean a star. Many now-famous British actors and actresses guest-starred in the films, including Brian Cox, Elizabeth Hurley, Pete Postlethwaite, Daniel Craig, Paul Bettany, and Padma Lakshmi.

Paul McGann, better known as the 8th incarnation of Doctor Who, was originally cast as Sharpe. McGann physically resembles Sharpe as the character is described in the novels. However, he broke his leg very early after the production began. He was replaced by Bean, and it's doubtful you'd find anyone else that the British public, as well as Bernard Cornwell, would accept in the role today.