PAUL Hollywood has struck a six-figure deal to star with the meerkats in Compare the Market TV adverts.
The Great British Bake Off star will appear in the price comparison site’s latest campaign using his surname as a pun to promote their 2-4-1 cinema tickets offer.
Paul, 58, follows movie actors such as Arnold Schwarzenegger, Nicole Kidman and Macaulay Culkin who have previously starred in the ads.
A TV insider said: “This is particularly surprising given that the Bake off judge very rarely lends his name to anything or takes part in campaigns.
“But the meerkat ads are well-liked and he thought the way they were going to use him was funny and clever.
“And Paul is an international star worthy of an international campaign because Bake Off has made him a famous face around the world.”
The adverts, which first appeared on our screens 15 years ago, feature animated meerkats led by Russian Aleksander Orlov and his pal, Sergei, and brought us the catchphrase, “Simples!”.
Paul will return as a Bake Off judge in series 15 on Channel 4 this summer.
The format has been repeated in 20 countries around the globe and the US version, called The Great American Baking Show.
The US show also has Paul as a judge, and made him a star on the other side of the Atlantic.
But it remains to be seen whether Bake Off returns to C4 next year when their current deal with creators Love Productions runs out.
