Bill Gates lands role in Doctor Who

Microsoft chairman and world's richest man Bill Gates has landed a role in cult BBC sci-fi drama Doctor Who, with a special half-hour episode set to hit UK screens later this year.

According to reports, Gates will play himself in the episode, the plot of which revolves around the abduction of the software tycoon while he is on a fishing trip on Lake Washington.

The Doctor, played by David Tennant, is then charged by the White House with the task of tracking down Gates' abductor – reported to be a war-mongering alien, Lord Daz Fenster, played by former Casualty star Derek Walker.

Teasers appearing on the internet suggest the episode contains a major twist at the end.

One spoiler site claims that Gates will be revealed himself as an alien who had been living undercover on Earth with a secret mission to take over the planet with a line of ubiquitous software.

The appearance follows Gates' walk-on role in Cheers spin-off Frasier and an animated appearance in The Simpsons.

Gates is a life-long fan of Doctor Who and famously said his favourite Doctor was William Hartnell.

"He's got a great first name," Gates, whose full name is also William, joked with reporters in 2001.

The episode will air on 31 November 2006.