Sacha Baron Cohen has given a rare interview as himself, rather than in the guise of one of the famous characters he has created such as Ali G or Borat.

He told the BBC he had previously protected his work by not giving interviews for fear of being recognised.

Speaking to the BBC's Will Gompertz in Cannes, he said the idea of his new film The Dictator - about a fictional Middle Eastern despot - was developed on the basis that he always found Gaddafi "hilarious".

Film clips courtesy of Paramount Pictures