O'Grady has recovered from a heart attack last year

O'Grady, most famous for his comedy creation Lily Savage, will present a pilot programme of one of the BBC's most popular entertainment shows.

The Generation Game, formerly presented by comedian Jim Davidson, has been off air for about 18 months.

But reports that O'Grady would become full-time host of a revived show were described by the BBC as "speculative".

"The Generation Game was never finished completely and there are always different ideas about how things may be done," said a spokesman for the broadcaster.

"O'Grady will host of a one-off edition of the show which the BBC is working on and will film some time next year."

During its heyday in the 1970s, hosted by Bruce Forsyth, The Generation Game was one of the UK's biggest family shows, gaining up to 19 million viewers.

One of the BBC's longest-running shows, it was later presented by Larry Grayson and more recently Davidson. But viewing figures fell to a low of 3.3 million.

There have been reports that BBC One controller Lorraine Heggessey wanted to revive the show for the Saturday teatime slot. But the BBC spokesman said there were no definite plans following the pilot.

Last year O'Grady, 47, suffered a heart attack which he said made him think carefully about his lifestyle and prompted him to quit smoking.