Paul Gascoigne will be on television at the exact same time as the ITV's new Raoul Moat drama, after it was confirmed that the footballer won't be featured in the series, despite showing up at the killer's final stand-off 13 years ago.
After Moat killed ex Samantha Stobbart's new boyfriend Christopher Brown and left her in hospital, he then shot and blinded PC Rathband as the police officer sat in a patrol car on the outskirts of Newcastle, before heading north to Northumberland.
The killer evaded detection for close to a week, living in the wild in the quiet village of Rothbury, before being involved in a tense stand-off with police, as news channels broadcast live coverage of the unfolding events. Before Moat shot himself dead, there was a bizarre turn in the case, when football legend Gazza headed to Rothbury, armed with a fishing rod, lager and a cooked chicken, convinced he could get through to Moat.
READ MORE: Why Paul Gascoigne was 'cut' from ITV's Hunt for Raoul Moat drama
Gazza's appearance at the scene made headlines but, other than a brief mention, the former England icon's unexpected cameo will not be featured in The Hunt for Raoul Moat,. which starts on Sunday, April 16 at 9pm. Explaining why, series producer Jake Lushington said: ""The surprise brief and not very successful intervention from someone famous (Gazza) became a big story at the time but it didn't change the events at all. We've referred to it , but it's got nothing to do with the story we're trying to tell."
He added: "We haven't minimised the impact of Gazza turning up because it didn't have one."
Gazza admitted years later that he had taken cocaine and been drinking on the night as he battled addiction he headed up to Rothbury, with The Hunt for Raoul Moat's writer, Kevin Sampson, adding: "Paul Gascoigne was clearly not in a good place at that time. If It felt like we were sending somebody up who was struggling, we'd have to question our motives."
But, while Paul won't be in ITV's Raoul Moat drama, he will be on Channel 4 in exactly the same Sunday night time slot, as a contestant in new Channel 4 show Scared of the Dark, alongside other celebs Scarlett Moffatt and The Wanted's Max George.
With Danny Dyer as host, the stars will enter a completely pitch-black reality space called The Bunker for eight days.
Over five successive nights the show will follow the celebrities as they get to grips with living in the dark. To prove their mettle, each of them will take on a series of challenges designed to test either their primal fear of total darkness or their ability to function in the pitch black. Those that fail at their challenges will have to take on tough tasks to save their place on the show.
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