<http://schema.org/articleBody>
"Danny John-Jules has blasted the BBC for its treatment of Red Dwarf. The actor has played the Cat in the sci-fi comedy since 1988 and will soon reprise the role in a new series on Dave. &amp;quot;The BBC never really pushed Red Dwarf as one of their flagship shows, even though it was so successful,&amp;quot; he told Digital Spy. &amp;quot;I think it all stems back to the commissioning days, when the BBC turned down [the show] twice.&amp;quot; He added: &amp;quot;Isn&amp;#039;t it ironic that it was Manchester that commissioned Red Dwarf - this guy Peter Ridsdale-Scott up in Manchester, who again was put out to pasture by the BBC!  &amp;quot;This wonderful guy... commissioned Red Dwarf against all the odds. And now the BBC&amp;#039;s based in Manchester!&amp;quot; John-Jules suggested that Red Dwarf is still under-appreciated, claiming that the show&amp;#039;s cast would often be &amp;quot;ignored&amp;quot; by the BBC. &amp;quot;There&amp;#039;s no question that if I was in a show in Hollywood that had been running for 23 years, I&amp;#039;d be able to hang out with [Barack] Obama!&amp;quot; he argued. &amp;quot;We&amp;#039;ve not even had a cup of tea at the BBC! But it&amp;#039;s not like it worries us - it&amp;#039;s great to be a bit controversial.&amp;quot; He continued: &amp;quot;We never get invited to comedy awards shows or BBC luvvie shows, anything like that. Red Dwarf has made untold millions all over the world, but we&amp;#039;re still not part of the furniture, if you know what I mean. &amp;quot;We never had a pat on the back from anyone. But we&amp;#039;re happy with that. We didn&amp;#039;t mind being ignored at the BBC canteen and in the rehearsal room.&amp;quot; John-Jules will next be seen in new BBC One drama Death in Paradise - beginning this Tuesday at 9pm. The new series of Red Dwarf will begin filming in November. &amp;gt; Read Digital Spy&amp;#039;s full interview with Red Dwarf&amp;#039;s Danny John-Jules Watch a classic Red Dwarf scene below:      "^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.digitalspy.com/tv/red-dwarf/news/a346775/danny-john-jules-red-dwarf-was-ignored-by-the-bbc/>