At night he partied with the likes of David Beckham, Elton John, Mel Gibson and Jack Nicholson.

By day he was just the guy next door measuring draughty living rooms for double glazing.

That was the lifestyle of Gary Tate, a dead ringer for film star George Clooney, who brought a touch of stardom to the sunshine coast of Eastbourne in 2000.

And the father-of-four, who lived in Eastbourne, was set for a bit of fame of his own by taking part in an ITV’s documentary The Lookalikes Agency based on the weird and wonderful world of lookalikes.

He may not have been earning six-figure pay cheques like his alter ego, but Gary would pocket £600 a night to go to parties and have his picture taken with guests.

Luckily for Gary his chisel-jawed lookalike usually played the strong silent types, meaning he did not need to undergo any acting training.

He said: “It’s really quite easy playing him. I just stand by the bar or whatever and have my picture taken.

“George Clooney is an easygoing type of person who just fits in.

“Some of the other lookalikes play people like David Jason or Joanna Lumley. They have to learn an entire act, so I’m lucky.”

Unlike Clooney, Gary had a day job measuring homes for double glazing firm Abbey Windows.

And just like the hero who always gets the girl, Gary found love through his part-time job.

His fiancée at the time, Claire Dickens, supplemented her living as a Body Shop worker by playing Tom Cruise’s ex-wife Nicole Kidman at parties.

Gary said: “We met through the agency. It’s a very strange place when you first go there.

“You have to keep doing double takes when you see all these famous faces in one place.

“The oddest part is the annual ball, where there are hundreds of them. You see Tony Blair talking to Posh and Becks by the bar and Marylin Monroe dancing.

“You have to be quite outgoing to do the job. A lot of people must be real dead ringers for stars but not have the confidence to carry it off.”

The wedding party would certainly have more than one double take to make with guests including Chris Tarrant, Richard Branson, Mel Gibson and Robert de Niro lookalikes, all from the 2,000 famous faces of London-based Derek’s Doubles.