Gareth Hale joins 'The Royal'

Comedian Gareth Hale has signed up to appear in the seventh series of the ITV medical drama The Royal.

Hale, who starred as Doug MacKenzie in Family Affairs, will play regular character Ken Hopkirk's cousin, ex-Merchant Navy Officer Jack Bell.

Jack will replace Ken as the St Aidan's Royal Free Hospital porter when the character, played by Michael Starke, departs to run his own B&B in Torquay

Talking about the role, Hale said: "I’m really excited about joining the cast of The Royal. It’s a fantastic show and I love my character.

"Having read the initial scripts I think Jack’s certainly got the potential to get himself into some mischief."

Ken Horn, producer on The Royal added: “Gareth is a great addition to the cast. Jack is a fun-loving character and I’m sure he’ll prove popular with the viewers."