Vic Reeves is to have a role in BBC One drama Inspector George Gently.

Funnyman Vic - whose real name is Jim Moir - will play a shady pawnbroker in an episode of the detective drama set in the late 1960s.

Also appearing in the same film will be actress Louise Brealey, who is known to TV viewers for her role as Molly in BBC One's Sherlock. She will play the prime murder suspect when a man's body is found under the Tyne Bridge in Newcastle.

The eighth series of the popular drama will be screened next year. Actor Jody Latham, from Shameless and Hollyoaks, will also have a role in one of the episodes, playing a "skinhead maniac".

Vic has taken a number of acting roles, including a part in the BBC Three comedy series Hebburn and as Eric Morecambe's father George in BBC Two film Eric And Ernie.