Veteran actor Stephen Fry has arrived in Wellington to begin filming his part in The Hobbit.

Fry, a prolific tweeter, touched down in the capital a few hours ago, telling his Twitter followers it was "brightish but not freezing".

After announcing he was going for "a little explore", he posted a photo of Max Patte's Solace in the Wind sculpture on the waterfront, prompting Wellington fans to head to the water.

"On a scale from one to creepy, where would you put 'running to the waterfront to stalk @stephenfry'?" Twitter user not_friends asked.

Another, farmgeek, said, "Having the lovely @stephenfry twittering from NZ will do more for us than the PM on Letterman ever could! (and no tax dollars spent)."

Others stuck to welcoming him to New Zealand, offering tips for Wellington watering-holes and activities.

Fry will play the Master of Laketown in The Hobbit movies.

He is also writing the script for Peter Jackson's remake of The Dam Busters.

His popularity in New Zealand skyrocketed after Sirocco the kakapo, DOC's spokesbird, tried to mate with the head of cameraman and zoologist Mark Cawardine while Fry was filming an episode of Last Chance to See here in 2009.

- © Fairfax NZ News