The Death of Borat and Ali G

He became a comedy sensation as the wannabe-gangsta-rapper Ali G by humiliating the people he interviewed. As Borat, the outrageously anti-Semitic, homophobic reporter from Kazakhstan he became a cultural icon while lampooning and offending virtually everyone he came across.

But as himself Sacha Baron Cohen is something of an enigma.

The intensely private comic actor readily admits he is more comfortable talking in the guise of the characters he has created, but unfortunately for him, both Ali G and Borat have had their day. Too many people know them and he reluctantly acknowledges that he can no longer retreat behind their personas.

"When I was being Ali G and Borat I was in character sometimes 14 hours a day and I came to love them, so admitting I am never going to play them again is quite a sad thing," he said. "It is like saying goodbye to a loved one. It is hard, and the problem with success, although it's fantastic, is that every new person who sees the Borat movie is one less person I 'get' with Borat again, so it's a kind of self-defeating form, really.

"It's upsetting, but the success has been great and better than anything I could have dreamed of."