Robbie dropped from US show

Chart star Robbie Williams has been given the chop from a hit cartoon he voiced after it was sold to the US.

Williams, who is desperate to break into the American market, was the narrator for the Robbie The Reindeer special, Hooves Of Fire.

But he has now been axed from the animated adventure as new voices, more palatable for the US market, are added.

BBC Worldwide, the corporation’s marketing wing, today announced a deal for the cartoon to be shown by CBS next month.

It had been shown before on the Fox Family Channel in its original form, but TV executives have now decided to reshape it.

Williams has been trying for years to make it big in the US and he has spent much of this year in LA.

Last month he signed a multi-million pound record deal which reportedly included a pledge that EMI would help him to crack America.

He has now been replaced by James Woods in the Robbie cartoon.

A spokeswoman for BBC Worldwide said: “Because it’s an American version they wanted American voices.”

A string of big name stars, better known to viewers in the US, have teamed up to take the parts.

They include Britney Spears and Hugh Grant playing reindeers Donner and Blitzen, while Meet The Parents star Ben Stiller plays Robbie The Reindeer himself, replacing Ardal O’Hanlon.

The show won 19 international awards, including a Bafta and two Berlin Film Festival Awards.

It had an audience of more than seven million when first screened by the BBC.

However, Williams can take comfort from his headlining role in the new Magic Roundabout movie.

He is to play Dougal the dog in the forthcoming film, with Kylie Minogue playing Florence.