Gervais performs in GTA IV

Ricky Gervais is to perform stand-up in the next Grand Theft Auto video game.

Players will be able to find him working in a comedy club within Liberty City in the long-awaited GTA IV.

He has recorded three minutes of new material, plus routines from his Fame show for inclusion in the controversial game set in the criminal underworld.

The comic had to wear a special suit so a perfect image of his body could be digitised for the game, which is out on April 29.

Gervais told Shorlist magazine: ‘It's a first - which always interests me. It was shot in New York, my favourite place in the world, and I got to wear a tight Lycra suit as part of the digital process. No, hold on, that wasn't so good.

‘Unfortunately they captured the whole horror, except I look slightly tougher. It is seriously a big deal, though. Games have outsold Hollywood for the past few years so it's nice to be a small part of that.’

It is not yet known whether you will be able to kill Gervais in the game.

He is not the first comic to move into the digital world, as Jimmy Carr peformed a gig in Second Life last year.

Published: 17 Apr 2008