Newsteam, assemble! Anchorman 2 gets UK premiere

Will Ferrell, Steve Carell, Paul Rudd and David Koechner were almost outshone by their female co-stars, Christina Applegate and Meagan Good, as they walked up the red carpet outside the Vue West End cinema in London.

Applegate, who has reprised her role as newsreader Veronica Corningstone, looked stunning in a pale pink lace gown while Good wowed in a plunging gold dress embellished with sequins.

Ferrell, 46, who is back as newsreader Ron Burgundy, joked that it was not easy working with his co-stars.

“It was difficult at best. A lot of these guys, they come on really nice but they’re kind of jerky. They wouldn’t talk to me. I tried to make friends and they just said it wouldn’t work,” he quipped, adding Rudd was “the jerkiest” of the cast.

Rudd, who returns as field reporter Brian Fantana, said: “It was really good and surreal and exciting and overwhelming at times.

“I couldn’t believe it was happening. There were so many maybes and false starts over the nine years so, by the time it came around, we all resigned ourselves to not ever doing it. But the stars aligned and we were able to do it.”

Carell - who portrays weatherman Brick Tamland - said: “It was very exciting and fun as you can imagine. They are the nicest guys you ever want to be with.”

James Marsden and Good are the newcomers of the cast for the film, which was written and directed again by Adam McKay and produced by Judd Apatow.

“They were very welcoming of the new blood. I was a fan of it and it’s very easy to be a part of a movie you’re a big fan of,” said Marsden.

Good said: “I was so hyped and so excited. It was everything I thought it would be - an awesome set full of genuine people who cared and are very nurturing.”

Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues, which sees the news team leading the nation’s first 24-hour news channel, opens in cinemas on December 18.