Kay is Throne by Car Share success
PETER Kay drafted in a Game Of Thrones star for the second series of Car Share.
But viewers might not recognise Conleth Hill, who plays bald, manipulative Lord Varys in the hit Sky Atlantic series.
The 52-year-old Irishman appears in episode two of the second series, which started on BBC1 last night and which is now available on iPlayer. But forget war and battles, instead Hill portrays a giant blue female Smurf Elsie, who makes moves on Kay’s character, John Redmond, at the end of the supermarket’s fancy dress party.
Elsie, who works on the meat counter, talks about everyone at work but insists she’s not a gossip, ending each sentence with the phrase: “I’m saying nothing.”
The show, which follows John and co-worker Kayleigh, played by Sian Gibson, on their journey to work was a ratings winner with more than nine million tuning in on BBC1 and iPlayer.
It also picked up two Bafta TV awards for Best Male Comedy Performance and Best Scripted Comedy last year.
But Kay, 43, wasn’t convinced it was going to match up to his previous successes, such as Phoenix Nights, which is why he premiered the whole series online first.
He explains: “I was very nervous about it so I put it on iPlayer. I thought, ‘Will people like that in this day and age? Two people prattling on?’
“So I was really shocked when it did as well as it did. “Not that I never believed in it. I thought, ‘Put it on iPlayer, try that’ because it was a new thing at the time.”
The show is set around Peter’s hometown of Bolton as well as Salford, Manchester, Wirral and Southport. But surprisingly, not many fans spotted them filming.
Kay adds: “People do not really notice, they are too busy doing stuff.
“You get the odd person who waves at you but not as much as I would have thought following the first series.”