John Oliver lands bucket list role on General Hospital

John Oliver
John Oliver is getting ready for his close-up on the TV soap opera General Hospital. -AP

British comedian John Oliver is heading to Port Charles, the fictitious town that ‌is the setting for long-running ABC television soap opera General Hospital.

Oliver, the ‌Emmy-winning host of HBO's Last Week Tonight, said on his show in ‌March that he longed to make a cameo on a daytime soap opera.

He said he was jealous of ESPN commentator Stephen A Smith, who has appeared on General Hospital as Brick, ‌the right-hand man ‌to ⁠a mob boss, for 10 years.

Producers of ​ABC's General Hospital granted Oliver's wish. The comedian is scheduled to appear on the show as an undisclosed character for three episodes starting on Thursday, the network said.

"It's a true honour to be a ⁠small stain on the ‌history ​of this illustrious show," Oliver said in a statement released on Sunday.

General ​Hospital began ‌airing on ABC 63 years ago and has featured ​unconventional stars in the past, including rock musician Rick Springfield and Oscar winner Elizabeth Taylor. It still runs ​on ​ABC and streams on ​Hulu.

In his appeal back in ‌March, Oliver said he wanted to play a character who would "do something juicy - like murder, or slapping, or being slapped, or being someone's long lost something".

"And ideally, I'd like a dramatic ​close-up of my face," he added.

"In return, trust me, I ​will give ⁠my all to this performance."