'West Wing' star gets BBC gig

LONDON, Oct. 10 (UPI) -- Hollywood actor Bradley Whitford has signed on to star in "Burn Up," a British television series slated to air next year, the BBC said Wednesday.

Whitford is an Emmy Award-winning actor best-known for his good-guy roles on Aaron Sorkin's TV dramas, "The West Wing" and "Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip."

Set to air on BBC Two, "Burn Up" will also feature "Spooks" actor Rupert Penry-Jones and "Party of Five" alum Neve Campbell.

The drama is expected to start shooting this month in Canada before moving to London next year.

Stephen Garrett of Kudos Film and Television described "Burn Up" as "a potent cocktail of fiction and fact that we hope will enlighten as much as it will entertain."

The show is about the clashes between a politician, an environmental activist and an oil industrialist as they prepare to attend a summit on climate change, the BBC said.