Freddie Starr discussed this episode in his 2001 autobiography "Unwrapped". Freddie recalled:
"If you were invited to talk to Des on the sofa, you'd never know who the other guests might be that night. I once walked into the green room, and who should be sat there, talking to his driver/minder but Hannibal Lecter himself, Sir Anthony Hopkins, who is a big comedy fan. We shook hands and made small talk at first, but when the conversation turned to comedy and who our all-time favourite comedian was, Tommy Cooper's name came up. We were both in the middle of telling old jokes using Tommy's voice and mannerisms when Anthony got the call that he was due on the studio floor.
He was on the show to plug his film Surviving Picasso, which he didn't seem very interested in discussing. In fact, after Des showed a clip of the film, he started to ask his guest a question about the part he played, but Anthony made it quite clear, in his easy-going, charming way, that he wasn't thrilled with the picture and suddenly went into his excellent Tommy Cooper impression, cracking gags for the rest of his spot, which took Des and the audience by surprise.
Everyone in the studio was reduced to helpless laughter, delighted with the theatrical knight's unactorish behaviour and sharp sense of humour. Even when the chat was over, Anthony behaved like a comedian who was 'on a roll', not wanting to conclude his 'act' and while the cameras were being rearranged for the next item, he borrowed the mic from Des's warm-up man Ted Robbins and delivered another barrage of great gags as Tommy.
As he didn't want to plug his latest film, I wonder what he would have talked to Des about for fifteen minutes if we hadn't met up in the green room!"
