Hasselhoff ready to move to Worcestershire village (From Cotswold Journal)

Hasselhoff ready to move to Worcestershire village

10:30pm Friday 28th September 2012 in News By Sarah Taylor

A WORCESTERSHIRE village looks set to receive a sprinkling of Hollywood stardust after American actor David Hasselhoff announced plans to move there.

The television star revealed earlier this week he hopes to swap Baywatch for Broadway after visiting the area with his girlfriend and falling in love with the village.

And residents had better get ready for his arrival as he joked of plans to change the name of the well known tourist hotspot to “Hoffway”.

‘The Hoff’, who is best known for his roles as Michael Knight in Knight Rider and Mitch Buchannon in Baywatch, as well as a spell as a judge of Britain’s Got Talent, has been in a relationship with Welsh girlfriend Hayley Roberts for about 18 months. They celebrated her birthday last week with a trip to the Cotswolds, staying at a hotel near Cheltenham and touring the area, including a visit to Shakespeare’s birthplace in Stratford-upon-Avon.

The couple were so taken with Broadway, in particular, that they put in an offer on a property in the village.

Speaking this week, the star said: “We recently went to the Cotswolds for Hayley’s birthday and fell in love with the place. We looked at a couple of houses there and have found a place in a little village called Broadway, which we’ve put an offer in for.

“The Cotswolds won’t know what has hit them. I’m hoping the locals take to us though and I’m already naming it Hoffway. I love your country and almost feel like an honorary Brit.”

Nigel Robinson, of the Treasure Trove, Broadway, said he knew of a few homes in the village for sale but doubted any would be secluded enough for the star.

Sue Woodford, who works at the Swan in Broadway, said: “We would be a bit speechless if he came in here. I remember him from Baywatch. He would be quite a personality in the pub and we would be excited to have a celebrity in our midst.”

County councillor Liz Eyre said that Broadway had always attracted luminaries in all fields and people were used to seeing famous faces.