Rowan Atkinson reveals a big secret about his famous 2012 Olympics performance

1 October 2018, 19:51 | Updated: 2 October 2018, 13:36

It's one of the most famous moments in music comedy, but now the star has revealed it was all mimed.

Rowan Atkinson has revealed that he mimed his famous performance in the Opening Ceremony of the 2012 London Olympics.

The actor told Classic FM that the whole performance was prerecorded, to save the London Symphony Orchestra's precious instruments from the unpredictable London weather.

He said: "The only thing we could do was to prerecord the whole thing so Simon Rattle was waving his arms about just as I was, miming to the music."

Ahead of the release of Johnny English Strikes Again, More Music Breakfast's Tim Lihoreau was joined in the studio by Atkinson, who plays the title role and Ben Miller, who plays English's sidekick, Boff.

Asked about how he uses classical music in his sketches, Atkinson said: "Music and comedy sit extremely well together, but they have to blend. They can't fight each other - it is a dance.

"Music is many ways in the straight man to the comedy, that essential support mechanism against which you can play". You can watch the interview in full below.

The soundtrack for Johnny English Strikes Again is composed by former Classic FM Composer in Residence, Howard Goodall (and even features a triangle solo from Tim).

In a wide-ranging interview, the duo also shared some of the secrets of the new film, from stunt driving to the absence of stunt bottoms.

Johnny English Strikes Again will be in cinemas this Friday 5th October.