Ricky Gervais delights viewers by bringing his beloved After Life dog onto Lorraine

Ricky Gervais gave viewers an unexpected delight during his appearance on Tuesday’s Lorraine, by bringing his beloved dog Anti onto the show.

The actor, whose pet appears alongside him in his Netflix black comedy After Life, praised his German Shepherd for being ‘such a good girl,’ after the final series of show was universally praised by fans.

During his appearance on the show, Ricky reassured fans that despite fears his character’s dog Brandy could meet his maker at the end of After Life’s third series, his pet will still be alive by the series’ end.

Sweet: Ricky Gervais gave viewers an unexpected delight during his appearance on Tuesday’s Lorraine, by bringing his beloved dog Anti onto the show

Appearing on the show with Anti seated alongside him, Ricky admitted he did feel pressure for the third series of After Life to deliver.

He said: ‘The emotional response, peole coming up to me in the streets saying it helped them, you realised that everyone’s grieving. 

‘It was never meant to be a show about grief, but more and more I felt a responsibility to treat it with respect. 

‘When I first came up with it I thought ”can people laugh at this?” but yes, if you treat it well. 

Sweet: The actor, whose pet appears alongside him called Brandy in his Netflix black comedy After Life, praised his German Shepherd for being 'such a good girl'

Sweet: The actor, whose pet appears alongside him called Brandy in his Netflix black comedy After Life, praised his German Shepherd for being ‘such a good girl’

Jovial: Appearing on the show with Anti seated alongside him, Ricky admitted he did feel pressure for the third series of After Life to deliver

Jovial: Appearing on the show with Anti seated alongside him, Ricky admitted he did feel pressure for the third series of After Life to deliver

‘People say ‘i was just like that’ people like seeing a bit of themselves on telly, even if it’s the bad stuff, it makes them feel normal and not being well is normal. 

‘Some people came up to me and they were therapists and they said they used the show in some of their sessions.’

Ricky also reassured his fans that his beloved dog won’t meet a grisly end during the show’s closing series, following a flurry of concerned tweets from fans.

He added: ‘Everyone was saying is the dog ok, ive been saying it for a year – the dog does not die. I promise, the dog does not die. She’s gonna live forever.’

Important: 'It was never meant to be a show about grief, but more and more I felt a responsibility to treat it with respect,' he said

Important: ‘It was never meant to be a show about grief, but more and more I felt a responsibility to treat it with respect,’ he said

Calling his dog ‘a good girl,’ Ricky then clarified to Lorraine: ‘I’m talking to the dog, not you.’

Ricky has warmed viewers’ hearts with his dog’s appearance as Brandy in After Life, acting as a huge emotional support for his character Tony following the death of his wife Lisa.

The Office star also detailed how he adopted his beloved foster cat, seven months after the death of his feline Ollie.

He added: ‘We lost our cat Ollie at 16 at the beginning of the pandemic and I wasn’t going to get another one until it was all over but Jane said ”we’ll foster” and this beautiful big lump of love came.

‘She hid for the first day then she got on my lap and she looked at me and we went ”we’re keeping it” I keep looking at it and I think ”oh youre so beautiful.”

She's fine! Ricky also reassured his fans that his beloved dog won't meet a grisly end during the show's closing series, following a flurry of concerned tweets from fans

She’s fine! Ricky also reassured his fans that his beloved dog won’t meet a grisly end during the show’s closing series, following a flurry of concerned tweets from fans

Adorable: Calling his dog 'a good girl,' Ricky then clarified to Lorraine: 'I'm talking to the dog, not you'

Adorable: Calling his dog ‘a good girl,’ Ricky then clarified to Lorraine: ‘I’m talking to the dog, not you’

Anti’s appearance on the show certainly delighted many viewers, who shared their thoughts on Twitter.

One wrote: ‘Morning Ricky and Brandy, Charlie (my god) & I cried with laughter at you both on Lorraine earlier.’

Another added: ‘@rickygervais I have watched Ricky Gervais being interview by Lorraine this morning & oh what a lovely man he is.’

‘Oh my goodness @rickygervais I relate so much. Humans you can take or leave but all animals are so beautiful. Love hearing your passion for animals. Plus Anti can say Lorraine,’ a third posted.

Acclaimed: Ricky has warmed viewers' hearts with his dog's appearance as Brandy in After Life, acting as an emotional support for his character Tony following the death of his wife Lisa

Acclaimed: Ricky has warmed viewers’ hearts with his dog’s appearance as Brandy in After Life, acting as an emotional support for his character Tony following the death of his wife Lisa

One fan tweeted: ‘@rickygervais just watched you on @lorraine #AfterLife has literally saved me from my own self, you do not always have to lose someone to grief, I am grieving for a childhood that was taken but you series has helped me get help and feel like I deserve to be here. Thank you.’

@rickygervais @lorraine excellent interview Ricky… saying it exactly like it is as always and so kindly… my mantra for 2022… wow I am normal,’ a fan praised.

One viewer also tweeted: ‘After Life’s closing scenes saw Ricky’s character and Tony and his dog Brandy fade away as they walked off together, after the grieving widower discovered a more positive outlook on life, and decided to use his wife’s life insurance to help others.’

Happy: Anti's appearance on the show certainly delighted many viewers, who shared their thoughts on Twitter

Happy: Anti’s appearance on the show certainly delighted many viewers, who shared their thoughts on Twitter

Ahead of their Lorraine appearance, Ricky and his dog Anti made a hilarious appearance on The One Show on Monday night, causing chaos when she wandered off the set to peruse the cameras. 

Ricky was in the midst of discussing how he’d react if his long-term partner Jane Fallon passed away, saying he’d want to die before her to avoid ending up like his After Life character Tony.

He said: ‘That’s where the idea came from, the first thought I had was, ‘What if you lost everything?’ You could do what you want without consequences.

Whoops! Ahead of their Lorraine appearance, Ricky and his dog Anti made a hilarious appearance on The One Show on Monday night, causing chaos when she wandered off the set

Funny: Reassuring his pet, Ricky added: 'I won't be going yet, I won't be going anywhere yet,' before Anti ran off to explore the cameras

Funny: Reassuring his pet, Ricky added: ‘I won’t be going yet, I won’t be going anywhere yet,’ before Anti ran off to explore the cameras

‘I think people connected with it because they hadn’t seen anything like that before, and after the first series, people came and told me about their struggles.

‘You suddenly realise, everyone is grieving about someone, and this is about Tony trying to get through it and asking ”If you lose everything in life still worth living?”

“I’d be terrible, I want to go first, it’s selfish but,” Ricky began before Anti jumped up onto the sofa and began licking his face. 

Reassuring his pet, Ricky added: ‘I won’t be going yet, I won’t be going anywhere yet,’ before his dog ran off to explore the cameras.

Lorraine airs weekdays from 9am on ITV. 

Back soon: Lorraine airs weekdays from 9am on ITV

Back soon: Lorraine airs weekdays from 9am on ITV

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