United Kingdom, March 20 -- Jason Earles claimed to be a teenager in order to land his role in Hannah Montana - but was actually 28.

The actor played 16-year-old Jackson Stewart, the brother of Miley Cyrus' titular character, in the Disney series and he recalled spending his early months on the show "desperately afraid" of being fired once producers discovered he was hiding a major secret.

Speaking on the Best of Both Our World podcast, he said: "I was desperately afraid that I was going to be fired and recast because I had a big secret.

"When I auditioned for the show, I lied to them and told them I was 18 years old."

Jason, now 48, told how his real age was discovered about "halfway through the first season", and he also had to admi...