Comedian Greg Davies says he's thrilled his hero Rik Mayall is playing his dad in his new Channel 4 sitcom Man Down.
The Inbetweeners actor, who stars as drama teacher Dan, tells TV Times he's always been a huge fan of Rik.
"Without wanting to sound too creepy about it, I felt honoured to be in Rik's presence.
"He's one of my heroes. He's a lovely man and a serious professional. He doesn't come in and go, 'Let's be wacky and hit each other,' he goes, 'Let's get this right.'"
After being a drama and English teacher for 13 years and playing sixth form head Mr Gilbert in The Inbetweeners, Greg was adamant he wouldn't write a comedy about a teacher.
"But then when I started writing it, it felt like a lie. So I thought, 'Sod it, make him a teacher.'"
Man Down starts on Friday, October 18 on Channel 4.
