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Peter Kay has been speaking to Sara Cox on Radio 2 and life and laughs(Image: BBC Radio 2)<\/p>\nPeter Kay has been speaking about his life and career as he promotes hisPeter Kay has been speaking to Sara Cox on Radio 2 and life and laughs(Image: BBC Radio 2)<\/p>\n
Peter Kay has revealed the moment he knew he could be a comic and get people roaring with laugher – when he got a big laugh playing a LION at school. In a new Radio 2<\/a> interview with pal Sara Cox<\/a> former Phoenix Nights creator Kay<\/a> spoke about performing as a youngster.<\/p>\n Sara<\/a> asked him if he was a bit of a class clown and Kay<\/a> replied: “Yeah, I were almost more comfortable making people laugh. It always seems that was the only thing I was ever really good at. We didn\u2019t do much performance at school because we had nuns. We had real teachers as well. We had humans, we didn\u2019t just had nuns. They weren\u2019t very theatrical nuns. We used to do an activity\u2026but we didn\u2019t do drama at school apart from an activity. I wanted to perform.<\/p>\n \u201cI was always in the choir and then I got offered the innkeeper and then I got told off by Sister Sledge[Joke name for one of the nuns] because I offered Mary and Joseph an ensuite with a full English and she weren\u2019t amused. But then I didn\u2019t do anything again until I did the Wizard of Oz in fifth year and I auditioned for the lion and I got the lion. That was a real\u2026 the moment. I thought I really love making people laugh.\u201d<\/p>\n Kay added that as a Lion he had missed some dance classes so he was supposed to watch as some second form girls led Dorothy, Tin Man and Scarecrow danced on stage in the school production. But Peter had other ideas.<\/p>\n He added: \u201cSo it was on over four nights and on the fourth night I thought \u2018sod it\u2019. So when it got to that bit, I got up and I started dancing around on stage and it got a really good reaction and then I danced off stage and I danced out, said hello to my mum. And then I spotted on stage because it were a forest, they had these third -year girls dressed up as trees. So I danced up and cocked my leg up on them.<\/p>\n \u201cBut then in the interval, Sister Sledge come back and she were like, it\u2019s not your show, there\u2019s other people in the show. You have got to think about them. Is that what you want to be when you grow up? A comedian? And then I wanted to say yeah but her hand was round me windpipe.”<\/p>\n Peter Kay was appearing on Radio 2 as he promoted his new book \u2018Peter Kay’s Diary: The Monthly Memoir Of a Boy From Bolton\u2019 and says he enjoys writing despite failing to get GCSE English at school. He has also extended his tour and the final shows next year<\/a> will see proceeds from his Better Late Than Never shows going to 12 cancer charities.<\/p>\n During the interview with Sara Cox he also spoke about his battle trying to lose weight and his comedy heroes.<\/p>\n He explained: \u201cI have been really lucky because I have met them all. I met Ronnie Barker. I\u2019d always absolutely adored Porridge, used to watch Porridge. Oh. Anyway, I wrote to him, and he wrote back. I mentioned I loved Porridge, and I\u2019d said how much it meant to me. One day, this letter came, and it said \u2018prison\u2019, and I thought \u2018who\u2019s written to me from prison?\u2019<\/p>\n “And I opened it, and it was Her Majesty\u2019s Prison Slade, and he\u2019d written to me in character as Norman Fletcher. And he wrote about \u2013 I were crying me eyes out \u2013 he wrote about nicking this paper from the library when MacKay wasn\u2019t looking and Barrowclough, and he wrote this two-page letter all about being in prison.<\/p>\n “And I met Billy Connolly as well. I still keep in touch with Billy Connolly now and he\u2019s not so good now, but he would still message and that. I think a lot of comedians in this country would not be doing what they did if it weren\u2019t for him. I think so much of it is influenced by him, heavily. Amazing.\u201d<\/p>\n * Peter Kay’s Diary: The Monthly Memoir Of a Boy From Bolton is out now, Sara Cox is on Radio 2 on weekdays 4-7pm.<\/p>\n Like this story? For more of the latest showbiz news and gossip, follow Mirror Celebs on TikTok <\/a>, Snapchat <\/a>, Instagram <\/a>, Twitter <\/a>, Facebook <\/a>, YouTube <\/a>and Threads <\/a>.<\/p>\n