British actor Simon Pegg has said he was “delighted” to be offered a role in new TV drama because he “trained to be an actor, not just a funny guy”.
Pegg, 52, rose to fame after writing and starring in the Three Flavours Cornetto comedy film trilogy, consisting of Shaun Of The Dead, Hot Fuzz and The World’s End.
Speaking on the One Show, Pegg, who stars in new Channel 4 drama The Undeclared War, revealed he was “flattered” to be offered the role of Government Communications Headquarters boss Danny Patrick and take part in a non-comedic production.
"It's an incredibly tense, beautifully written show and it was a pleasure to make."@simonpegg tells us all about his new drama #TheUndeclaredWar 💻🔐
Stream #TheOneShow on @BBCiPlayer 👉 https://t.co/YLJysobrG7 pic.twitter.com/E4x7KtseBs— BBC The One Show (@BBCTheOneShow) June 30, 2022
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“I was delighted to get offered the role because obviously I come from having done mainly comedy, not always, but I’m generally thought of as someone who does comedy and so for Peter Kosminsky to take a punt on me as a dramatic actor, because the show is very dramatic, I was really flattered by that.
“And I relished it you know, I trained to be an actor not just a funny guy.
“So if you are expecting me to make a joke in the show, you’ll be very disappointed.”
The drama, written by Bafta award-winning Kosminsky, 66, is set in 2024 and follows a group of GCHQ analysts as they battle the threat of a serious cyber attack spotted by an intern played by Hannah Khalique-Brown.
Pegg also discussed his recent Glastonbury Festival experience with show hosts Alex Jones and Roman Kemp, where he revealed he was a fan of K-Pop band BTS.
"We got to meet them and I was as starstruck as she was."@simonpegg reveals how his daughter got him into @bts_bighit! 🤩🎶
Stream #TheOneShow on @BBCiPlayer 👉 https://t.co/YLJysobrG7#BTS #BTSARMY pic.twitter.com/ZGkaTV24OV— BBC The One Show (@BBCTheOneShow) June 30, 2022
“I have a daughter, Tilly, she’s 13 tomorrow. She’s very much into K-Pop, she knows her K-Pop. She sat me down, and she knows I’m a bit of a grumbly old indie kid, I’m a bit of an old rocker, and she said ‘listen to this’ (BTS).
“And I listened to it, and it was really great. So we took her to see them recently and we got to meet them and I was as starstruck as she was.”
Pegg also discussed his daughter’s Glastonbury performance in 2016, during which she performed on stage with Coldplay, alongside the children of the band’s frontman Chris Martin.
Jokingly he added: “My biggest achievement of my first Glastonbury in 1987 was not going to the toilet for three days. Her first Glastonbury, she headlined. I mean, what?”
The One Show airs on BBC One every weekday at 7pm.
