Captain's Log: Stardate 2007. William Shatner simply refuses to get over his annoyance at not being cast in J J Abrams's upcoming Star Trek picture.

The reliably immodest Canadian actor, now a rubbery 76, went on the rampage while in conversation with an entertainment TV show last week. "How could you not put one of the founding figures into a movie that was being resurrected?" he bellowed. "That doesn't make good business sense to me. I've become even more popular than when I was playing Captain Kirk. I'm good box office and I get publicity."

Abrams's Star Trek, which focuses on the early days of the Enterprise's crew, is scheduled for release next Christmas.