Stars voice animals in new London Zoo ad

Comedians including Bill Bailey, Catherine Tate, Alan Carr, Tom Allen have recorded a new TV ad in aid of  London Zoo.

Other stars including Jonathan Ross, Josh Widdicombe, Sean Lock, Jon Richardson,Meera Syal, Dane Baptiste, Kerry Godliman, Alex Brooker, and Shazia Mirza  lend their voices to animals  plotting ways to save the zoo in the two-minute video.

Bailey voices Bob, the emperor tamarin monkey, who is chairing a marketing meeting with the other animals with Bhanu the  lion (Allen), landing on the winning idea through an accidental screen freeze. 

The comic said: 'I think Bob and I are quite similar, we both share a certain joie de vivre, and have eccentric facial hair.' 

 Dominic Jermey, director-general of  the Zoological Society of London said: 'The closure of London and Whipsnade Zoos put us under immense financial pressure; we’re fighting our biggest challenge in our 200-year history. The situation ZSL is facing is anything but funny.'

'We’re hoping this light-hearted approach, supported by an incredible array of comedians who have generously donated their voices to our campaign, will get people smiling and donating. '

The ad airs on Channel 5 and across Sky channels from  today, and donations can be made at www.zsl.org/justgiving 

Published: 20 Jul 2020