The cast of Russell T Davies’ new E4 gay drama, Banana, which we announced last year, has been announced, and includes real-life gay Geordie Andrew Hayden-Smith.

Waterloo Road actress Georgia Henshaw also features in the show that has been billed as ’50 Shades of Gay’, along with Top Boy’s Letitia Right, Hannah John-Kamen and comedian Bethany Black.

Hayden-Smith told Attitude magazine today, “I’m so excited to have been cast in Banana. I think viewers are really going to like what Russell has written and the way the show reflects gay life today”.

Banana is billed as a partner drama of Davies’ new Channel 4 series Cucumber, and will tell eight separate stories in 30 minute instalments.

In a press release, Davies’, who created the groundbreaking Queer as Folk series, said, “The joy of Banana is in the beautiful, charming, witty and sometimes heart breaking stories of a wide variety of characters, be they gay, lesbian, transgender or anything in-between”.

Both shows will be accompanied by an ‘online partner show’, Tofu, which is described as being “an anarchic and entertaining factual series about sex – from gay to straight and anything in between – inspired by the dramas each week”.