Peter Kay, one of Britain's best-loved comedians, is the latest star to be cast in the eagerly awaited series two of Doctor Who.

However, Peter will be swapping his trade mark gags for more serious acting, when he steps into the role of the cold and powerful Victor Kennedy later this month.

Link: www.eyeofhorus.org.uk

It's been reported on the Media Guardian site too - let's hope his performance is more Simon Pegg than Richard Briers...

Pete's a great comic actor but not a good serious one

I think this is horrific news. I can't abide PEter Kay, but usually find it easy to avoid his drivel. Now he's going to be in one of my favourite shows.

That angers me!

now official as stated on the bbc website

http://www.bbc.co.uk/doctorwho/news/...08/30164.shtml

According to the MediaGuardian article he has done some serious roles...


(EDIT - which I've just seen is in the BBC article as well)

Get over it, you'll survive

Wow, thanks. My hatred of the least funny man alive is cured now, thanks to your magnificently insightful words.

i havent seen him in serious roles, but because he a comedian, his role is going to be tainted in my eyes. Ill be watching out for funny mannerisms, but i guess we will have to wait and see

Indeed. Peter Kay is about as funny as cancer, and just about as tollerable.

Just saying.

And better than his 'turn' on Coronation Street. Not one of my favourite comics to be honest and I can't comment on his serious work as an actor as not really seen any of it.

On the news item on the official site it also lists Danny Webb as being in the new series. Does anyone know what episode he is in?

Unless you have seen someone die from such a disease, I suggest you think carefully about saying such ridiculous things.

What? You want to step down from your soapbox for a second? First, it was hyperbole - it's used all the time, and whatever my life experience are or aren't is highly irrelevant. Second, if you read what I said, the you will notice that I posited (quite correctly) that cancer is not remotely funny.

Which it isn't.

Now move along, eh?

Don't be cocky, just accept the fact that what you said was a mistake

I don't. It wasn't.

I also don't want to stink up this thread with this puerile nonsense.

The more I hear, the more I think Chris Eccleston made the right decision to leave.

Sorry, Peter... stop wasting your time trying to be taken seriously - it ain't gonna happen, and get your lardy northern arse back working on the next series of Phoenix Nights - a series I have higher hopes for than this one. Sadly.

This doesn't bother me as much as some of the other bits of casting, because he's there to play a "Doctor Who" character, and not himself or one of his characters shoved in as a pop culture reference.

He's never seemed the slightest bit funny to me (apart from that advert where he shoved his mum into an old folks home so he could get a pool table), so I won't have trouble accepting him in a serious role.

Given a slight bit of hope by the fact Barbara Windsor wasn't mentioned as a guest in that BBC piece.

Too late...

I would rather have Kay in the new series than anything to do with Eastenders appearing on it. I do like him as a comedian, but as he is not known for serious roles, this looks like tacky stunt casting.

Who next? Jordan and Peter?

I'm trying so hard to not say "I didn't start it" just in case I then get my pigtails pulled and I have to tell 'Miss'.

Of course you're entitled not to like him. I don't either. However it is just possible that he might be competent enough to pull this off.

So get some perspective and try waiting until after it's been on before slating it.

Oh, and as sarcasm goes, that was weak.

Come on folks. Can't we agree to disagree and just get on with the debate.

Strange that there was concern about Billie Piper being cast as the doctor's assistant, there were very similar posts all over the boards when that happened.

Give the actors that are chosen a chance.

You know, some of the "unknown" actors that have been cast might be crap, but we don't know anything about them.

Judge the performance, not the press releases or rumours.

I usually find comedians tend to do serious drama well, Johnny Vegas in Bleak House comes to mind here. So I'm not going to judge until I've seen it.

However, an ex-pop singer as the Doctor's companion...