Simon Callow has proved he is one thesp who does not shirk the big parts.

The actor began playing God in the West End comedy Spamalot at The Playhouse Theatre on Monday – albeit in the form of a tape-recorded turn projected onto a screen.

In a suitably benevolent act, he has donated his fee to the Keats Community Library in Keats Grove, Hampstead.

Mr Callow said: “I used to live round the corner as a young actor and used the library all the time.

“Don’t know what I would have done without it.”