Jon Richardson joins Waterloo Road

Richardson swaps comedy circuit for the classroom…

The BBC has announced that comedian and TV personality Jon Richardson will join the cast of Waterloo Road as a new addition to the staff room when the hit drama returns for its next series later this year.

Jon Richardson:

“I would say that joining Waterloo Road is a dream come true, but in truth most of my dreams about school revolve around not having done my homework or put on my uniform. I wanted to be a teacher growing up so hopefully this role will put all those ambitions to bed, and I can stop telling my friends and family that I will be testing them on what I’ve been saying or telling audiences on tour that it’s their own time they’re wasting.”

Today’s announcement comes as Jon surprised fans on social media yesterday with the revelation that he was retiring from the comedy circuit to pursue teaching. However, there was more to the news than Jon first revealed.

Viewers will have to wait for the next series of Waterloo Road to find out exactly who Jon will play, and what lies in store for him at the famous school.

Lindsey Coulson will continue in her role as Dame Stella Drake

Jon joins Lindsey Coulson, who will continue in her role as Dame Stella Drake, Waterloo Road’s new head, and Jason Merrells, who reprised his role as Jack Rimmer as a guest in the most recent series and will return as a regular main cast member in the next series.

The most recent series saw the arrival of Dame Stella, who joined the school to save it from its notorious reputation as the ‘murder school’ following the fatal actions of Billy Savage (Olly Rhodes) and Steve Savage (Jason Manford) the previous term.

With her Ofsted background at the forefront of her mind, Dame Stella struggled throughout the series to find the right balance between protecting the students and teachers of Waterloo Road and getting their education back on track.

All episodes from every series of Waterloo Road are available to stream on BBC iPlayer.