Brian Blessed to play Steven’s Dad in the hit Matt Berry comedy Toast of London
Veteran actor will play the father of vain and bombastic luvvie in the upcoming series of the Channel 4 comedy, RadioTimes.com can reveal
Matt Berry won the Bafta male comedy performer award this year for his role as the self-important actor lothario Steven Toast, and he will be blaring his way back on to Channel 4 later this autumn in the fabulous Toast of London.
And now RadioTimes.can reveal that the new character of Toast’s Dad is going to appear in one of the episodes.
Not only that, there has been an inspired bit of casting for the role. Because who else could play the father of the loudest and most luvvieish of luvvies better than… the great Brian Blessed?
The blessed Blessed will appear in the same episode as Mad Men star Jon Hamm (below), whom RadioTimes.com recently revealed will also be starring in the new series as himself (the joke being that Steven doesn’t know who he is).
“We find out where Steven comes from – it’s not a humble background, let’s say, but then there isn’t much about Steven that’s humble,” says a source on the show.
Blessed, who is 79, has enjoyed a lengthy career and is one of the most recognised and best loved actors in the country.
He has starred in a range of films and television projects including I, Claudius, The Avengers, Flash Gordon and Randall and Hopkirk (Deceased) as well as scores of stage plays.
However he has suffered from heart problems recently and in January was forced to withdraw from a stage production of King Lear after fainting on stage.
Last year he caused a stir by revealing that he thought he killed Doctor Who star Peter Capaldi when he accidentally punched him in the face while filming a scene from the period drama Tom Jones.
“So whenever someone mentions Peter Capaldi I’m bloody glad he’s still alive! I thought I’d killed the poor bastard.”
