We're big fans of Mark Addy here in entertainment towers. We loved him in The Thin Blue Line, laughed with him in The Full Monty, and thought he was rather awesome as the errr, rather interesting King Robert in Game of Thrones. Now it's been announced that he's going to venture to the lost city of Atlantis for a few more rip roaring adventures, as you do.
Addy joins veteran actress Juliette Stephenson (who was probably the best thing about Bend It Like Beckham after Jonathan Rhys Meyers in a crisp white shirt) in the brand new BBC Drama, which is being tipped to replace Merlin on Saturday nights. Created by Misfits mastermind Howard Overman, the 13-part series which be choc-a-block with mythical creatures, legendary heroes and a few gods to boot.
The BBC have just revealed the full cast for the epic adventure. It's already been announced that Broken star Robert Emms will feature, and now we know he'll be joined by Addy, Stephenson, Sarah Parish (Monroe), Jemima Rooper (Lost In Austen), Jack Donnelly (Dancing On The Edge) and Aiysha Hart (Djinn).
Addy is over the moon to be getting in on the action. "I am very excited to be invited along on this epic adventure," he said. "The scripts bring to life ancient myths with such a vibrancy and sense of humour; I knew I wanted to be a part of it."
And of course, the BBC are delighted to have big names like his in the credits. "The fantastic cast announced for Atlantis is testament to the ambition and scale of Howard Overman's scripts," said Ben Stephenson, Controller of BBC Drama Commissioning. "Some of the UK's best-loved actors are joining our newest talent to take the BBC One audience to a rich and wonderful world where any adventure is possible."
Filming starts in April, and Atlantis is due to hit our TV screens some time in the autumn.