David Threlfall has admitted he's only seen a few episodes of the US version of Shameless.

The actor starred in the original UK version as layabout Frank Gallagher until the Channel 4 show, which began in 2004, ended in May.

Speaking about the US remake, starring William H Macy, David said: "I met Bill when I was out there (in America)... I watched an episode or two of the original series, and you could clearly see they were going to go their own way, as they should, and I think he felt the same.

"He saw a bit of ours and felt, 'I'm just gonna do my own thing', which is absolutely as it should be.

"I have nothing but high praise for what is a fine actor, but I haven't seen it beyond those couple of episodes."

David added: "Maybe one day I'll sit down and look at the American shows, but the fact it's taken quite a chunk - the last 10 years - of my life is not something I'm ready to get into."

The actor, who is set to appear as Tommy Cooper in an ITV drama and stars as detective Len Harper in What Remains, said of Shameless: "I don't want to dismiss it, because I loved doing it and directing as well, but I do want to move on and do other stuff. That's what's started to happen this year, and who knows?"

:: What Remains is released on DVD by Acorn Media on October 7