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Ricky Gervais has paid tribute to his After Life character’s dog following the animal’s death at the age of 13.

Vislor Antilly, a German shepherd known as Anti, played Brandy through three seasons of the Netflix comedy about a local newspaper reporter dealing with the death of his wife.

Antilly was born in Herefordshire, at the home of West Bromwich-based Vislor Dog Training Centre, and was also in Tom Cruise’s film Edge Of Tomorrow and appeared alongside George Clooney in The Midnight Sky.

Gervais said “Anti was a beautiful soul” and she had helped make After Life “my favourite filming experience of all time”.

Antilly passed away at her home in Oxfordshire and the comedian, actor and writer said it was “such sad news”.

He added they had “hit it off straight away” and stated: “I’m so glad that I told her a hundred times a day that she was a very good girl.”

Gervais, as Tony, is often seen in the show walking Brandy, who stops him from taking his own life.

The comedy began in 2019 and also starred David Bradley, Ashley Jensen, Tom Basden, Tony Way, Kerry Godliman, Roisin Conaty and Diane Morgan, before finishing with a third season in 2022.

Antilly was raised by trainers Travis and Ashley Foster, who appeared as a henchman in Sir Christopher Nolan’s Batman: The Dark Knight.

She visited them on set at 10 weeks old and later went on to be in films including the Michael Fassbender-starring Trespass Against Us.

Clooney went on to cast Antilly in the 2023 film he directed, The Boys In The Boat, and the dog also appeared in the BBC’s The Capture, ITV’s Doc Martin as well as Britain’s Got More Talent and Channel 4’s 8 Out Of 10 Cats Does Countdown.

Her final stunt on camera was released in July 2024 in the Midsomer Murders’ episode The Debt Of Lies, where she played a retired police dog who detains the murderer before retiring.

Antilly retired from film and TV after that.

A statement said: “Vislor Antilly, known to most people worldwide as Brandy, Ricky Gervais’ loyal sidekick in the Netflix smash hit After Life, has passed away peacefully at her home in Oxfordshire at the age of 13.”