Ashes to Ashes actress Keeley Hawes has revealed that she would never step into another actors shoes again.

Keeley took over on the Life On Mars spinoff show from actor John Simm and faced numerous bad reviews for her trouble.

“I’d never do it again, I’d never step into somebody else’s shoes,” she told the Times.

“I should have been more daunted. The reaction! People just could not get their heads around the fact that I wasn’t John Simm. I’m not! I’m never going to be!” she continued.

Keeley added that she was even shouted at in the street by a stranger who took issue with how her character Alex Drake spoke to Philip’s Gene.

“She was furious with me. ‘How dare you speak like that to Gene Hunt? He’s a good man!’ This is a grown woman, in Soho. Talking to me about a time-travelling show… I mean, it astounded me,” she said.

The new series of Ashes To Ashes begins later this month on BBC1.