Tennant is portrayed as a horror movie fan in the latest series of commercials, but is seen being overwhelmed by the choice offered by his TiVo.

In a possibly more horrific development, Sir Richard Branson is also set to appear in forthcoming Virgin Media TV ads.

Richard Larcombe, brand and marketing director at Virgin Media, said: “David and Richard are a blockbuster duo so we’re excited to have them back for our latest campaign, celebrating the unbeatable choice of movies and TV box sets available on Virgin Media TiVo.

“We always want to bring a sense of fun to our ads and working with them and a room full of unusually well-behaved cats raised quite a few grins. These ads are set to build on the success we’ve enjoyed with previous high profile campaigns featuring David and Richard and, of course, Stephen Fry, Mo Farah and Usain Bolt.”