Back after a three-year break

Ricky Gervais is to host the Golden Globes again, despite ruffling Hollywood’s feathers in previous years.

The Derek star will be back behind the podium at the Beverly Hilton Hotel on January 10, four years after he last took the job.

Tina Fey and Amy Poehler have hosted the event the last three years, to critical acclaim.

Before them, Gervais hosted the awards for three consecutive years from 2010 to 2012, although his ribbing of the stars did not always go down well.

After the 2011 show, Phillip Berk, the president of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association which organises the awards, said The Office star had ‘crossed the line’. However he also increased the TV audience for the ceremonies by more than 2 million viewers.

And today NBC entertainment chairman Robert Greenblatt said: ‘We’re excited to have Ricky Gervais back to host the most enjoyable awards show of the season in his own inimitable way,

‘Disarming and surprising, Ricky is ready to honour — and send up — the best work of the year in film and television. Fasten your seatbelts.’

And the broadcaster’s president of alternative and late-night Paul Telegdy added: ‘Tina and Amy are a hard act to follow but Ricky is completely fearless and entirely up for the job. He always did us proud. Welcome back, Ricky.’

Gervais himself tweeted: 'It's a good job I'm drunk. Otherwise the thought of hosting The Golden Globes again would seem like a real pain in the arse.'

Nominations for the Golden Globes will be announced Thursday December 10.

Published: 26 Oct 2015