Before he was a Ricky Gervais favourite, David Earl couldn't even land an offscreen role...

David Earl has become one of Ricky Gervais’s regular ensemble of cast members, from a small role in Extras to bigger roles in Derek, After Life and the upcoming Alley Cats animation.

But it wasn’t always so easy to get work with the more senior comic.

Speaking to promote his new U&Gold show Joe and David’s Magical Sitcom Tour with his pal Joe Wilkinson, he revealed he once emailed the producer of The Office to try to get a lowly offscreen role.

‘I emailed Ash Atalla to work as a runner on the second series because I wanted to be involved so much,’ he said. ‘But there were no spaces. I would have loved to have been in The Office…’

Still, it worked out OK in the end. 

 Joe and David’s Magical Sitcom Tour – which looks at The Office as well as Fawlty Towers and Porridge is on U&Gold from next Tuesday at 9pm. 

And there's an interview with Earl and Wilkinson here.

Published: 28 Jul 2026