The ninth series of Doc Martin is upon us and once again the Wimbledon-born actor Martin Clunes will reprise his role as the grumpy GP in a small Cornish town.

Discussing the popularity of the ITV comedy drama, Clunes, along with on-screen wife Caroline Catz, reveal the elaborate gifts they receive from fans of the show.

"I've had quite a lot of knitwear - socks and gloves for all the family - which is very nice," says 57-year-old Clunes, also famous for Men Behaving Badly, Warren and Manhunt.

"Lego - there has been some lovely Lego figures," Manchester-born Catz, 49, chimes in.

Then there's the poetry, the songs and the paintings.

"Lots of paintings!" the DCI Banks star enthuses. "It gets quite interesting, the fan artwork is brilliant."

For anyone not in the know, the series centres around Clunes' character, grumpy GP Martin Ellingham, his wife Louisa (played by Catz) and their lives in a sleepy, beautiful hamlet in Cornwall.

The job is a family affair for Clunes, as his wife Philippa Braithwaite is the show's producer.

"It's an immense pressure getting eight scripts of the quality that we like together, that serve everybody's story arcs - all of our regular characters," Clunes confides gently.

"But it is worth it. I think once again, down to my wife and Mark [Crowdy, executive producer] and the various writers and everyone, they've really got it right. They're really good scripts and all of the cast are happy with their bits."

Doc Martin starts on ITV on Monday, September 23.