ONE of television's most popular comedians was given a right Royle welcome at Accrington Stanley.
Actor-comic Ricky Tomlinson, 67, visited the Fraser Eagle Stadium to shoot scenes for a comedy DVD to be released later this year.
Ricky, famous for his role as Jim Royle in TV's Royle Family and faux England manager Mike Bassett in mockumentary film Mike Bassett: England Manager, is a loyal Liverpool supporter.
But now Stanley chief executive Rob Heys believes the club may have a new celebrity fan.
He said: "I think Ricky will have a soft spot for Stanley now. Everyone enjoyed the shoot and a lot of the staff at the club were selected as extras. We looked after the crew and I think they all enjoyed themselves."
The stadium was chosen by producers because the ground still has terraces and is not an all-seater, unlike many others in the North West.
The club was first approached about the filming only two weeks before the shoot so planning was relatively quick, but everything came together with ease.
Rob said: "Thursdays and Fridays are usually pretty quiet days at the club so it definitely added a bit of excitement to the end of the week."
Ricky spent both days filming and was at the ground until 7pm. Members of the youth team were also asked to help out with filming.
One of the scenes involved Stanley's groundsmen carrying Ricky off on a stretcher due to an injury.
Rob said: "I think everyone enjoyed the experience as it is not something that happens every day. It was a good laugh."
