Showbiz

'Harry Potter' actor Timothy Spall rescued by lifeboat crew

Published Friday, Aug 26 2011, 03:56 BST | By Kate Goodacre | Add comment

Timothy Spall was rescued by a lifeboat crew after he got lost filming a television show on his barge.

The actor - best known to global audiences for playing Peter Pettigrew in the Harry Potter movies and Winston Churchill in The King's Speech - radioed the coastguard as he tried to make his way back to Chatham Marina in Kent.

An RNLI lifeboat was launched from Sheerness at about 9.30pm on Wednesday to come to Spall's aid. Crew member Andy Matthews told BBC News: "He was right to call us. Things could have got much worse. Mr Spall was very grateful for the RNLI's assistance."

Spall's barge - named the Princess Matilda - was found off Stangate Creek in the River Medway and escorted to safety at Queenborough Harbour on the Isle of Sheppey.

He is currently filming a show for BBC Four called Timothy Spall: Back at Sea.

The show's producer Paul Crompton confirmed that Spall had now returned to Chatham Marina and would remain there for two or three days.

Watch a short clip from Timothy Spall: Back at Sea below (video contains some strong language):