Ricky Gervais was "tracked down like FBI" by David Bowie

Ricky explained: "In the green room afterwards, then director-general Greg Dyke bounced over to me and Jane (Fallon, his partner) and said, 'You're a big Bowie fan, aren't you? Do you want to meet him?'

"I said, 'Oh, I don't want to pester him.' He said, 'No, come on.' Then he shouted 'Salman! We're going to say hello to David.' So there I was, with the head honcho of the Beeb and Salman Rushdie, chatting to Bowie in his dressing room."

Ricky explained how the 'Space Oddity' hitmaker confessed that he had not seen any of his work but later got in touch to reveal that he had watched 'The Office'.

He told The Daily Telegraph newspaper: "I don't know how he got my email address. He's like the FBI. But he said: 'So I watched 'The Office'. I laughed. What do I do now?'"

Ricky went on to form a friendship with Bowie – who passed away aged 69 in January 2016 – with the music star appearing in 'Extras' while Gervais recalled his performance at the musician's High Line Festival in 2007.

He recalled: "I went over and Madison Square Garden was sold out. I thought it was just going to be this little gig, so I asked Bowie: 'What sort of stuff shall I do?'

"He said: 'Anything you like as long as it's delightfully offensive.'"