Just in July, Jesse Spencer and Jennifer Morrison, the co-stars of the hit Fox medical drama House, were featured as a happily engaged couple in that month's issue of American magazine InStyle Weddings.

A month later, the two announced on Aug 15 that they were calling off the engagement.

In hindsight, signs that their relationship was on the rocks surfaced two weeks before the announcement.

That was when Spencer, 28, who hails from Melbourne, had a teleconference with Life! and reporters in Asia, to promote the third season of House, which is airing on AXN (StarHub Channel 19) now.

Asked about their engagement, the Aussie actor clammed up. 'I would definitely like to make my personal life personal,' he said curtly.

This, despite the tell-all story in InStyle Weddings, which detailed how he proposed to Morrison, 28, in Paris.

However, Spencer lightened up to questions about his professional life.

Before he shot to international fame playing the ambitious Dr Robert Chase in House, he was earning his chops in the Australian soap drama Neighbours in the 1990s.

Later, he moved to London for work in theatre and TV - and a call for him to play Dr Chase then led to his Hollywood career.

He clinched the part easily but there was a slight problem - he could not nail the American accent. To make things easier, Dr Chase, written originally as American, became Australian instead.

The actor was proud that the change was made. 'Australia is a bit off the radar, because there are very few characters written in Hollywood that are Australians. It is very exciting for me to be one.'

Ironically, he had to relearn his Aussie drawl. After about four years in Britain, he had developed a British accent - much to the dismay of the lead actor Hugh Laurie.

Spencer recalled with a laugh: 'During the filming of the pilot episode, he was horrified. He was trying to get away from the English accent to do his American part right, and there I was.'

And unlike Dr Chase, Spencer said that he is not much of a go-getter. 'He looks smarter than I am. I'm more laid-back. I'm not set out to win. I would like to think I have a bit of a backbone and that I am fairly loyal and not a conniving person.'

Coming from a family of doctors, he said that they got a kick watching him play one on a medical drama.

'They occasionally take it apart when we get something wrong. They like to e-mail that some diagnosis is actually this and that and I'm like, 'What? What?''

On the other hand, Spencer admitted being helpless if a medical situation occurred in real life

'Here's the thing, I can drive really fast. If someone collapses, I can probably get him to the hospital quick. Apart from that, no. Mouth-to-mouth, no. In the US, you get sued if you help someone and you hurt them. You're better off walking away.'

However, he added with a chuckle: 'I would love to try stitching someone up, because it doesn't look hard, does it?'

szeyong@sph.com.sg

The third season of House airs on Mondays at 10pm on AXN (StarHub Channel 19).