Peter Kay's years away spent 'hiding in Ireland' and fundraising for sick kids
It was a devastating blow when Peter Kay was forced to cancel his £40million tour in December 2017, citing "unforeseen family circumstances".
But after lying low for two and a half years, the Bolton-born funnyman made a much-welcomed return for BBC coronavirus charity special, The Big Night In in 2020. However, his future appearances were few and far between.
He returned to the stage in August 2021 for two special charity events to raise money for Laura Nuttall, a then 20-year-old with an aggressive type of brain cancer called glioblastoma multiforme, who sadly died last year.
After that, in December 2022, the comedian was brought to tears after he received a rapturous standing ovation which lasted several minutes when he appeared on stage for his first live comedy tour in twelve years.
Peter Kay arriving for a gig in 2022There was also a brief return in January 2021 when he appeared on BBC Radio 2 to chat to Cat Deeley – who was filling in after Graham Norton left the station – about his love of music, mixtapes and the musical Mamma Mia.
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He also made a surprise appearance at a charity screening of his series Car Share in 2018 - and has just been spotted gearing up for his new tour.
So where did the Phoenix Nights funnyman go?
After axing his tour and all other work indefinitely just days after appearing on Strictly Come Dancing, his disappearance was immediate and his Twitter page was plunged into silence.
Fraught fans wondered aloud about what had happened to their comedy favourite - who has since been hit by three cruel death hoaxes. And they went wild when Peter returned to social media in March 2018 to announce a charity screening of Peter Kay's Car Share.
The event was held to raise cash for The Lily Foundation, which helps children with mitochondrial disease, and in a moving blog post he told how he had 'first hand' experience of the charity's work.
The star then disappeared for an entire year, reportedly retreating to his bolthole in Tipperary, Ireland, where locals claimed he seemed determined to fly under the radar. One resident told The Sun: “Peter clearly wanted to keep a low profile and did everything he could to avoid attracting attention to himself while staying here.
“You'd never see him in the local pubs or restaurants, and he always seemed to be alone. Most people only ever saw him passing through."
However, his expensive Range Rover apparently blew his cover with the insider adding: "Everyone saw him coming a mile off because of that Range Rover. If he didn't want to be noticed, he definitely picked the wrong car to drive around in."
Peter is believed to have retreated to his rural bolthole in Tipperary, Ireland (Getty)Peter's mum Deirdre hails from Coalisland in Co Tyrone, and in November 2017 the notoriously private star opened up about his secluded second home, telling The Late Late Show: “I don’t talk about it because I don’t want it to get robbed. We’ve had a house here for 12 years.
"We come here all the time. Whenever there's a school holiday, really. We give Christmas a miss because the house is freezing. It takes ages to warm up."
Despite Car Share winning the best comedy gong at the NTA's in January 2019, Peter didn't show leaving his co-star Sian Gibson to collect the award on their behalf. Handing out the award to Sian, Peter's Phoenix Night's co-star Paddy McGuinness joked, "Where is he? Where is he?", prompting Sian to reveal he was, "watching from home with a cup of tea."
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Peter Kay during the We Are Manchester benefit show (PA)The actress - whose character Kayleigh Kitson fell for supermarket manager John Redmond (Peter Kay) on their daily commute - did, however, confirm they were working on new projects. "We have got things that we are going to do together," she told the Daily Star. "Obviously I like to do my own stuff as well and hopefully the two can carry on."
Then in April 2019 Peter finally surfaced, making a surprise appearance at a screening of Car Share at Blackpool Opera House for The Lily Foundation, with organisers revealing he raised a staggering £34,000 in the process.
Charity founder Liz Curtis - whose daughter Lily tragically died from the condition when she was eight months old - said: "We can't thank Peter and his team enough for this incredibly generous donation. For a small charity like ours this is a very significant sum. I know I speak for all our families in thanking Peter from the bottom of our hearts. He's shown once again what a real star he is."
While in the town, Peter also treated himself to a trip on the town's trams, happily posing for a picture with staff.
He also posed for pictures on the trams (@BplHeritageTram)A post shared to the company account joked, "We do love a celebrity passenger on our tours, when we can't get one @ PeterKay_co_uk will do instead! He kindly allowed a a photo with the driver and conductor on Boat 600 this afternoon."
Dipping his toe back into showbiz, he was pictured backstage at the Peter Pan panto in Crewe and Nativity! The Musical in London on December 29, with director Debbie Isitt sharing the snap on social media.
"So lovely to see the brilliant comic genius Peter Kay and his lovely family @nativityuk tonight for our final show!" she wrote. "What a lovely surprise for us all."
A snap of Peter Kay was shared in tweet by Nativity! director Debbie Isitt (Debbie Isitt/Twitter)Then came the news fans had been waiting for. This February he announced his comeback, unveiling plans to host six Dance For Life shows in London, Liverpool and Manchester for Cancer Research UK this April.
Sadly, the dates were postponed amid the pandemic, but Peter appeared on screen for The Big Night In in April 2020 as part of a reworked version of his music video for (Is This The Way To) Amarillo, which featured members of the public and emergency service workers. He then performed two sold-out sets at Manchester’s O2 Apollo in 2021 to raise money for Laura Nuttall, 21, who had an aggressive type of brain cancer called glioblastoma multiforme and sadly died in May last year.
The comedian also recorded an audio version of his bestselling autobiography The Sound Of Laughter 15 years after it was published and said it is “an effort to try and cheer people up a bit”. Then in November 2022, he was brought to tears on the opening night of his first live comedy tour in 12 years. The comedian received a rapturous standing ovation which lasted several minutes, with audiences chanting his name, as he took to the stage.
He appeared overwhelmed by the reaction, pausing to lean against a stool on stage before standing up and dabbing his eyes. “Oh Jesus look at me, I mean what’s that all about… how am I supposed to do bloody comedy now?” he asked audiences, prompting the first laughs of the evening.
He added: "Lovely Manchester you made me cry… where did it come from, all that emotion?”
The live tour - which has plenty more dates this year - was the comedian’s first since 2010, when he scored the Guinness World Record for the biggest-selling run of all time, playing to more than 1.2 million people.
Then in September, Kay released a new memoir - TV: Big Adventures On The Small Screen. It marked 50-year-old Kay’s long-awaited return to the page following the record-breaking release of his autobiography The Sound Of Laughter in 2006, Saturday Night Peter in 2009 and The Book That’s More Than Just A Book in 2011.
Peter Kay's Dance for Life at Manchester Central (Staff MEN)The book is described as a nostalgic love letter to a childhood spent idolizing "the wooden box in the corner of the front room” that went on to inspire a lifetime’s work, publisher Harper Collins UK said.
Before its release, Kay said: "I’d wanted for years to write about my obsession for TV and working in it. It’s been such a massive pleasure recalling the adventures I’ve had over the last 25 years both in front (of) and behind the camera, and I hope people will enjoy reading about the journey as much as I’ve enjoyed writing it.”
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