It's been 25 years since Rowan Atkinson made his TV debut as the lovable, albeit self-centred, Mr Bean. 

And to celebrate, the talented British actor slipped back into character and took his iconic car, a 1976 British Leyland Mini 1000, for a spin outside Buckingham Palace on Friday, English media report.

Atkinson, now 60, lapped up his surroundings from the comfort of the armchair strapped to the top of his car as it whizzed by the iconic London landmark.

In the original sketch, Bean descends on the January sales where he snaps up several items, including an armchair, tins of paint and a mop.

However, after fastening the chair to the roof and squeezing everything else inside the car, he soon realises that there is no room left for himself.

Ever the genius, he figures out a way to drive the car remotely from the comfort of the chair attached to the roof using his shopping haul before setting off on a daredevil driving expedition.

And Atkinson seemed delighted to be back in the hot seat as he toured around London, accompanied by his precious friend Teddy.

The star pulled a number of his iconic faces as he waved to fans and posed with a celebratory cake. 

Atkinson revived Mr Bean back in March when he teamed up with Comic Relief for a fifth time to raise money for the charity. 

Atkinson even floated the idea of another new movie in the future.

He continued: 'We could possibly make a movie one day named 'Old Bean' and consciously create an old Bean, who's like Bean but really doddery, and I think one could confront the age issue head-on.'  

Atkinson co-wrote all fifteen original episodes of Mr Bean with either his old university friend Richard Curtis or Robin Driscoll, or both. Ben Elton co-wrote the pilot.