ladbible homepage
ladbible homepage
  • Home
  • News
    • UK
    • US
    • World
    • Ireland
    • Australia
    • Science
    • Crime
    • Weather
  • Entertainment
    • Celebrity
    • TV
    • Film
    • Music
    • Gaming
    • Netflix
    • Disney
  • Sport
  • Technology
  • Travel
  • Lifestyle
  • Money
  • Originals
    • FFS PRODUCTIONS
    • Say Maaate to a Mate
    • Daily Ladness
    • UOKM8?
    • FreeToBe
    • Citizen Reef
  • Videos
  • Advertise
  • Terms
  • Privacy & Cookies
  • License Our Content
  • About Us & Contact
  • Jobs
  • Latest
  • Archive
  • Topics A-Z
  • Authors
Facebook
Instagram
X
Threads
Snapchat
TikTok
YouTube
Submit Your Content Here
  • GAMINGbible
  • LADbible Group
  • UNILAD
  • SPORTbible
  • Tyla
  • FOODbible
  • UNILAD Tech
What Karl Pilkington is up to now 12 years after Idiot Abroad
Home>Entertainment
Published 11:33 16 Feb 2024 GMT

What Karl Pilkington is up to now 12 years after Idiot Abroad

The Ricky Gervais fan-favourite has forged a career for himself since 'An Idiot Abroad'

Joshua Nair

Joshua Nair

google discoverFollow us on Google Discover

Karl Pilkington was a massive fan-favourite when he starred in An Idiot Abroad from 2010-2012, but what has he been doing since?

Originally thrust into the limelight by friends Stephen Merchant and Ricky Gervais, Pilkington only had brief appearances on TV prior to his famous travel show.

He was also part of The Ricky Gervais Show around the same time, fuelling fans' desires to see more of the hilarious character.

Karl Pilkington with Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant during a press tour for 'An Idiot Abroad' in 2011.
Frederick M. Brown/Getty Images

Advert

The 51-year-old has previously compared himself to Homer Simpson when talking about how his career has evolved since An Idiot Abroad, and he too has changed.

The Sky comedy-documentary followed Karl as a man who has no interest in global travel, being sent to visit various different countries in the world to experience their cultures.

Gervais and Merchant stayed in the UK to monitor his progress, as Karl was often left perplexed and sometimes confused at the differences in food, culture and lifestyle overseas.

It was the main selling point of the series, though he has since primarily built a career in TV off the success the documentary series generated.

Many people have been curious as to what he would be doing now, and it turns out, it's more than you'd think.

One of his most noted roles was on Sick of It, you can watch the trailer below:

In Sick of It, Karl is struggling to get his life back on track after being dumped by his girlfriend, and is constantly being criticised by the voice in his head, serving as his alter-ego, the real him who is not afraid to speak the truth.

The comedy-drama series ran on Sky for two seasons to generally positive reviews.

The Sale-born actor also starred in The Moaning of Life, a series with a very similar premise to An Idiot Abroad, except Pilkington got to choose where he travelled to.

He also saw how people in different countries deal with some of the problems in the modern world, such as marriage, happiness and money.

Karl also had a role in Ricky Gervais' series Derek.

Away from acting, the Brit has also done some advert voice-overs you may have missed on TV, with one of his more notable ones being for SMARTY mobile.

You may have heard him say the famous line: "Less malarkey, more smarty."

Karl Pilkington signing DVD copies of 'The Moaning of Life 2' in 2015.
Shirlaine Forrest/WireImage/Getty

Fans shared their thoughts on Karl's involvement with advertisements on Reddit.

One user posted: "That’s awesome, good for him. Little effort, steady money!"

Another wrote: "Fair play to the bloke. He probably gets a decent pay to do these ads, super easy, audio only, and he can live his life without loads of people shouting his heads like a f***ing orange. He never wanted fame did he back in the day and he seems very introverted, so fair play to him."

A third put: "I legit thought Karl was going to say Bulls*** man," in a reference to a famous scene from An Idiot Abroad.

Featured Image Credit: ITV

Topics: Ricky Gervais, Travel, TV and Film

Joshua Nair
Joshua Nair

Joshua Nair is a journalist at LADbible. Born in Malaysia and raised in Dubai, he has always been interested in writing about a range of subjects, from sports to trending pop culture news. After graduating from Oxford Brookes University with a BA in Media, Journalism and Publishing, he got a job freelance writing for SPORTbible while working in marketing before landing a full-time role at LADbible. Unfortunately, he's unhealthily obsessed with Manchester United, which takes its toll on his mental and physical health. Daily.

X

@joshnair10

Recommended reads

Emma Thompson has a famous daughter that you probably don't know aboutSebastian Reuter/Getty ImagesWhat happened to The Little Rascals child actor Brittany Ashton Holmes after she disappeared from HollywoodABCAstronauts returning from space today will need to relearn how to walk after spending 241 days aboard ISSNASA/YouTubeCancer survivor who had four inches of penis removed recalls excruciating 'first sign' he ignoredLADbible

Advert

Choose your content:

2 hours ago
3 hours ago
5 hours ago
6 hours ago
  • Sebastian Reuter/Getty Images
    2 hours ago

    Emma Thompson has a famous daughter that you probably don't know about

    She works with her father's surname so you might not have put it together

    Entertainment
  • ABC
    3 hours ago

    What happened to The Little Rascals child actor Brittany Ashton Holmes after she disappeared from Hollywood

    She was only five when she starred alongside Alfalfa in the cult classic

    Entertainment
  • 20th Century Fox
    5 hours ago

    Here's what the Cheaper by the Dozen cast looks like now (you'll barely recognise them)

    A viral post about Cheaper by the Dozen has made fans revisit what the cast look like now and what they're up to

    Entertainment
  • Warner Brothers
    6 hours ago

    Paramedic's haunting remarks on Kathleen Peterson murder scene as ITV airs The Staircase

    A drama about the case is now streaming on ITVX

    Entertainment
  • The Office stars set to reunite 25 years on but David Brent won't be making an appearance
  • Here's what the Cheaper by the Dozen cast looks like now (you'll barely recognise them)
  • What happened to The Little Rascals child actor Brittany Ashton Holmes after she disappeared from Hollywood
  • Where Tony from MTV's Fat Camp is now after site closed