If you’re a fan of the Syfy version of Being Human and have never seen the original UK version, never fear. The first season of the Syfy version did a brilliant job of following some of the UK storylines from all three seasons, changing others, and creating entirely new ones. Don’t be distressed, therefore, when you think that information about the UK Being Human, which airs on BBC America, is spoiling you on the Syfy version.

With that out of the way, original UK Being Human fans, we have news. First, sadly, it’s true: Mitchell is really gone. Happily, we’ll be seeing Aidan Turner on the big screen in The Hobbit, as that’s why he left. And his replacement has been cast: it’s Damien Molony, and although he’s as Irish as his name implies, they’re not trying to replace Irish Mitchell with another Irish vampire.

According to his interview with SFX, Damien will be playing an English vampire named Hal:

Very, very posh. Very upper class. A stiff upper-lipped Brit, which is a bit of a push for me accent, but it makes it a lot more fun. I promise you, no! No, no, no – Hal’s not Mitchell 2. There’s a lot of back story to play with and I assure you he’s very, very different.

OK, we’re kinda bummed that we won’t get to hear him say things like “a bit of a push for me accent,” but we’re willing to live with that, especially because he’s going to be looking so natty:

At the start, I’m a tweed suits man. Very, very well dressed. Pressed shirts and cufflinks. The best part about playing a vampire is you get all the best clothes. I know some people have raided Aidan’s wardrobe from last year, and helped themselves to some coats and some jackets.

Being Human is returning to BBC3 for an 8-episode fourth season in 2012, and SciFi Mafia would love to see it return to BBC America on the exact same day. We’ll keep you posted.