'Emmerdale' casts comedian Tommy Cannon as 'exciting' new character
Comedian Tommy Cannon is gearing up for a “brief stint” on hugely-popular ITV soap Emmerdale.
The 81-year-old, who is perhaps best known for being the straight man to Bobby Ball in 80s double act Cannon and Ball, took to Twitter to share the news.
In a tweet that has now been deleted, he revealed that he’s set to play a character called Derek and that he can’t wait to “spend some time in the ‘dales.”
Read more: Bobby Davro thinks he's 'one of the last people to speak to' Freddie Starr
Little else is known about the role he’ll play in the long-running series, but it’s expected that he’ll turn up on the small screen over the next few months.
“He is joining the show but won’t be on air for a while,” a source recently told The Sun Online. “He’s playing a new character and everyone’s really excited to have him on set.”
Cannon’s friends and fans seemed thrilled about his future involvement on Twitter, as Paddy McGuinness wrote: “Congrats pal.”
Elsewhere, Karen Blick, who plays cleaner Lydia Hart on the show, replied: “Brilliant news.”
Cannon’s Last of the Summer Wine co-star Louis Emerick also wrote: “Huge congratulations, looking forward to seeing you in The Dales.”
Read more: Comedian Iain Lee has come out as bisexual
Throughout his 40 year career, Cannon - whose real name is Thomas Derbyshire - has appeared in other shows such as Plaza Patrol, Doctors and Not Going Out.
Along with long-time collaborator Ball, he’s also taken part in numerous reality TV shows including Celebrity Coach Trip, Celebrity MasterChef, Pointless Celebrities and I’m A Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here!
The pair’s biggest claim-to-fame, however, was their nine-year stint on ITV with variety show The Cannon and Ball Show, which premiered in 1979.
---Watch the latest videos from Yahoo UK---