Comedian Peter Kay played his first stand-up live show in Manchester's AO Arena on Friday night, and was praised by a reviewer for a "triumphant" and five star return. It was the first of his sell-out 110 date tour across the UK and a Manchester Evening News reporter said "it was like he'd never been away."
Dianne Bourne said the evening started off with crowds chanting his name, adding that it was clear the roaring warmth of the home crowd in Manchester really touched the comedian. Peter Kay said: "Lovely Manchester you made me cry," as he was welcomed on stage.
Dianne continued: " Wiping away those tears though, the rest of the night was firmly about making his fans laugh - and laugh and laugh they did. This show really did have it all - for the die-hards there was the knowing laughs to famous quips from years gone by. For those who have never seen him live before there were his hilarious musings on modern life. You can get more What's On news and other story updates straight to your inbox by subscribing to our newsletters here.
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"Boltonian Peter’s charm is his brilliant observations on everyday life, and this new show reminded fans just what they’d been missing. It clearly meant a lot to Peter to be starting it all in an arena where he actually used to work as a steward - gleefully telling us about his interview for the job back in 1995."
The reporter described how Peter said: "I'm so f***ing grateful. I was a steward and now I'm up here." He mused on famous faces he's met in his career and told hilariously near-to-the-knuckle anecdotes about some of them.
Garlic bread gets a "hefty" mention too. The 49-year-old was wearing a smart black suit with a blue shirt, showing off a trimmer figure of late. He made a nod to his weight loss during one anecdote about internet clickbait stories, joking: “See how much weight Peter Kay has lost”, to huge approving cheers from the audience.
Dianne continued: "There were plenty of dazzling surprises in this two-hour show. And it represents some serious value-for-money for the standard £35 ticket price that Kay insisted on setting this new tour at to make it affordable for fans.
"The rocking finale allows him to live out his rock n roll dreams, in the inimitable Peter Kay way. And there is a stunning star cameo that leads to huge gasps from an audience wondering whether they can really believe their eyes - but I won’t ruin the surprise.
"Peter has asked fans to respect future audiences by not videoing any element of the show which is met by cheers from most in the crowd. Given there are another 109 shows to get through over the next three years he’s probably got a point."
Peter told the audience: "Let’s just live in the moment, and not spoil it for other people." He described being a stand-up comedian as "the best job in the world", and Dianne said he proved that he was just about the best in the world at that very job.
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