James Spader has developed a closer working relationship with Boston Legal co-star WILLIAM SHATNER - after sleeping with him.

The two actors have just filmed a scene, in which they sleep together, for the upcoming season of the legal drama series - and Spader reveals that he and his castmate have struck up a close friendship after the pseudo-romantic interlude.

He says, "(It's a) very graphic, explicit, loving scene. Bill and I (are) spooning, wrapped around each other in bed.

"After we finished the scene, he sort of was dealing with me in a very different way than he had before... and he spoke in a different tone, a sort of closer tone - pillow talk.

"He mentioned that how interesting it was that it's rare that, except with the person that you're having sex with or a parent, you're never really that close to someone or that intimate, where you're that close, where you really get to smell their smells.

"We were doing a scene when we were right in there for a while."

And Spader admits his castmate has a very distinctive odour.

He explains, "You can tell a lot about a person by that first impression, that first smell. He had a very sort of, a strangely very attractive sort of pungent sort of gamey, sort of a venison or a lamb sausage... and a little bit of rosemary with a touch of ranch dressing."

16/05/2005 08:58