Patrick Swayze’s back

Battling Patrick Swayze is to return to work after a gruelling bout of cancer treatment. The Dirty Dancing star has been given the all-clear by docs to begin filming TV drama series The Beast. It will be the 55-year-old’s first TV work in years.

Patrick is to play an unorthodox FBI veteran training a partner who is spying on him.

He said: “I can’t wait to get to work on this. I’ve searched for quite a long time to find a character so multi-layered, unpredictable and downright entertaining, as well as a project this current and cutting-edged.”

The series is set to air early next year on A&E in America. Production starts in Chicago shortly.

Network boss Bob DiBitetto said Patrick’s treatment for pancreatic cancer — which included chemotherapy and new drugs — had checked the disease.

He said: “We’re thrilled to have Patrick on board. We’ve had candid conversations with him and his doctors and we have a fairly high degree of expectation that Patrick will be good to work a full production schedule.”

Zack Van Amburg, co-president of Sony Pictures TV, who are to make The Beast, added: “It’s amazing, it’s inspiring, and it’s almost unprecedented.”

Well, as we always say, no-one puts Patrick in a corner!