A small aside in a Reuters' article about his autobiography has broken the news that Rolling Stone Keith Richards will be returning as Captain Teague, in Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides.

Richards, you'll recall, turned up admidst the mayhem that was At World's End as the father of Johnny Depp's Captain Jack Sparrow. Depp had always said he'd based the character on Richards' stoned swagger, so it seemed nothing if not appropriate.

The full quote is that Depp and Richards "are currently shooting the fourth Pirates installment, where Richards reprises his role as Sparrow's father." No clue as to the size of the role this time around then. Just a cameo like last time, or something a bit more substantial? There's also no mention of whether "Mum" will be making a reappearance.

But we do learn that Depp, as a friend of Keith's son, was a regular in the Richards household for years, without Richards ever recognising him. Until one day, at dinner, "I was like, 'Whoa! Scissorhands!'"

On Stranger Tides - sort of, but not really based on a Tim Powers novel - is about Cap'ns Sparrow and Barbarossa (Geoffrey Rush) in search of the Fountain of Youth, and co-stars Ian McShane as Blackbeard and Penelope Cruz as his daughter Angelica. Shooting, as mentioned, is currently underway with Rob Marshall at the helm, for a release next May. Richards' autobiography, Life, is published on October 26.