Sacha Baron Cohen

Sacha Baron Cohen kept his identity so secret that people used to talk about Ali G while sitting next to him.

The British comedian is famed for assuming a number of hilarious characters, such as Ali, Bruno, Borat and Admiral General Aladeen from his new film The Dictator.

He’s famously publicity shy unless in character, explaining when he started out people had no idea who he was.

“For a number of years in England nobody had any idea what I looked like. People would talk about Ali G while sitting next to me,” he told the BBC today.

“One time I was all dressed as Borat before anyone had seen Borat and I was standing outside the Ali G DVD stand in Oxford Street [London].

“All the Ali G fans were around and no-one knew it was me. There was always a certain satisfaction. I enjoyed being anonymous.”

He has been reluctant to do interviews in case his cover was blown. If that happened and people withdrew consent, things he has been working on would never go to air.

The 40-year-old star also spoke about why he went into comedy.

“Jews all have a tendency to become comedians. If you look part at America, Seinfeld, Adam Sandler, Jack Black, Larry David, most of those guys tend to be Jewish. I think from a history of persecution you have to develop a sense of humour,” he explained. © Cover Media