Comedian Peter Kay has announced he is returning to stand-up with his first live tour in 12 years.
Sharing the news on his Facebook page shortly after 9.30pm on Sunday, Mr Kay said “if there’s ever a time people need a laugh it’s now”.
Kay said in the post: “It’s good to get back to what I love doing best, stand-up comedy and if there’s ever a time people need a laugh it’s now.
“And with the cost of living at an all-time high, ticket prices are starting from £35. The same price they were on my previous tour in 2010.”
The new tour begins on Friday, December 2 with a show at Manchester Arena, and runs until August 11 next year, when it will end with a show at Sheffield Utilita Arena.
It will see Kay tour a number of northern cities, taking in Birmingham, Liverpool, Leeds, Newcastle, and Nottingham.
He will also hold shows in Belfast, Dublin, Glasgow and Cardiff.
It will be his first live tour 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.
He had been due to go on tour in 2017, but cancelled the run citing “unforeseen family circumstances”.
News of his impending comeback was also announced during an advertisement break in the series launch of I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here! on ITV on Sunday night.
It has been widely welcomed by fans on social media. Ali Wade described it on Facebook as the “best news ever”, while Julie Howarth wrote: “Fantastic. Welcome back Peter, you’ve been missed.”
Many others were quick to share their disappointment that the tour is not currently due to visit London or the south.
“Gutted his not coming down south but its brilliant to see him back,” wrote Caroline Langley, while Zoe Stannard said “brilliant gutted you’re not coming south”.
Kay has been largely out of the spotlight in recent years, but has delighted fans with his hit Bafta-winning TV sitcom Car Share.
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.
There 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.
He also made a surprise appearance at a charity screening of his series Car Share in 2018.
Tickets for Peter Kay’s nationwide tour go on sale Saturday November 12 at 10am via www.gigsandtours.com and www.ticketmaster.co.uk. For Belfast and Dublin, tickets will be available at www.ticketmaster.ie.
