Its other cast members include Jeremy Irvine, Robbie Coltrane, Ewen Bremner and David Walliams.

BBC: Great Expectations to close London Film Festival

The 80-year-old's most recent collaboration has been with comic actor and writer David Walliams.

BBC: Profile: Quentin Blake

Our job is to protect the public, and David Walliams is a member of the public.

BBC: Walliams' stalker faces jail term

Little Britain star David Walliams has been shortlisted for the Roald Dahl Funny Prize for a second year running.

BBC: David Walliams up for Roald Dahl award

He beat other short-listed authors including David Walliams and Frank Cottrell Boyce.

BBC: Dark Lord: Teenage Years wins Roald Dahl Funny Prize

Isobel Harwood, 12, and seven-year-old Isobel Murray took the top prizes in the 500 Words short story contest, which was judged by Dame Jacqueline Wilson and David Walliams, amongst others.

BBC: Chris Evans misses radio show as wife goes into labour

Other cast members include Jeremy Irvine as Pip, Robbie Coltrane as Mr Jaggers, Sally Hawkins as Mrs Joe, Holliday Grainger as Estella, Ewen Bremner as Wemmick, and David Walliams as Uncle Pumblechook.

BBC: Great Expectations: New end penned for Dickens classic

Jodie Marsh transformed herself from a glamour model to a body builder, David Walliams swam the length of the Thames, Eddie Izzard ran a marathon a day, six days a week for seven weeks.

BBC: From marathons to mud running

Other sketches featured X Factor mogul Simon Cowell rejecting advances from David Walliams and Louis Walsh only to marry himself, while Ricky Gervais resurrected The Office's David Brent for an appalling new song promoting racial diversity called Equality Street.

BBC: Comic Relief Archbishop sketch draws 2,200 complaints

But as auditions came to an end at 22:45 GMT, Cowell heard about Mr Hagenstede's predicament and invited him to join him on the private jet that was flying him and fellow judges Alesha Dixon and David Walliams to Luton airport.

BBC: Simon Cowell gives father-to-be lift home to make birth