Stephen Fry news updates...

Kevin Spacey, the theatre’s artistic director commissioned him to write the script, even though the workload meant he had to turn down an offers to write for Doctor Who.

Fry said: ‘When you are set a benchmark of excellence such as that of Russell T Davies, you have to have it right or not at all. So I decided reluctantly on not at all.’

Under Spacey, who described described Fry as ‘an exceptional talent’, The Old Vic has become known for its high-profile pantos, including Sir Ian McKellen playing Widow Twankey in Aldadin.

Fry is also writing a script for the remake of 1953 war movie The Dam Busters, to be produced by Lord Of The Rings director Peter Jackson.

Jackson told OnFilm magazine he chose Fry after seeing him host the Baftas.

‘I felt it needed to be an English writer and somebody who understood the atmosphere of Britain at war,’ he said. ‘I said it needed to be somebody with Stephen Fry's sense of humour.

‘I sat through many three-hour award shows during The Lord of the Rings years and always looked forward to the Baftas, solely for Stephen's hosting. He kept you laughing.’

Meanwhile Fry has launched a savage attack on reality shows - saying he ‘loathes and despises’ them for ‘picking over the remains of life’.

‘Dancing On Ice is simply torture to me,’ the QI host told actors’ newspaper The Stage. ‘I would rather skewer my own eyeballs out of their sockets with a blunt bodkin than I would watch that. I thrive on creativity, energy and excitement.'

Published: 25 May 2007