The last time Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje came home to London to visit his family, he went unnoticed in the street. When the actor next returns he can expect a different reaction.

He is the newest star of the hit TV show Lost, featuring in the second series which is due on our screens next month.

He plays Mr Eko, an African with a mysterious connection to the island where the plane crash victims struggle to survive.

In America, where they are halfway through series two, Akinnuoye-Agbaje has become a heart-throb. And in Hawaii, where the show is filmed, he can't step outside without sparking a furore. "I can't do normal things like go shopping or to a club," he said.

"I'm not really prepared for it in London because I grew up in English culture where you don't really want to be too flash. It's going to be different but my family keep me level."

Akinnuoye-Agbaje, 38, and his four sisters were born in Islington to Nigerian parents. He took an MA in criminal justice at King's College and was expected to follow in his barrister father's footsteps.

But at 22, while doing a holiday job at a Kensington fashion store, his life took a different turn.

He said: "People would buy clothes for fashion shoots and one day someone said, 'Can we have these clothes and can we have you in them?' That ended up being an ad for Hyper Hyper on a huge billboard."

After finishing his MA, Akinnuoye-Agbaje made for Milan, modelling for Thierry Mugler and Comme des Garcons. Three years later, he went to Hollywood.

He appeared in commercials and music videos until a director cast him in Congo, a 1995 action movie based on the Michael Crichton novel. TV work and more films followed, including The Mummy Returns and the 50 Cent biopic Get Rich Or Die Tryin'.

Then came Lost. His family, at first concerned about his career, are now fans. "Mum's a Lost addict," said Akinnuoye-Agbaje. "It took 10 years but my family has definitely come round."