AT first glance, the man striding along the road in rural Ireland could have been a local on his way to the nearby shop.
But residents were shocked to discover that the unfamiliar face belonged to none other than multi-millionaire funnyman Peter Kay.
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The Phoenix Nights comic this week sensationally announced his return to comedy after a two-year absence from showbiz.
And we can reveal Peter retreated to the Irish bolthole shortly before he announced the cancellation of a £40million tour, citing “unforeseen family circumstances”.
The dad of three told disappointed fans he had to put “his family first”.
And he went on to vanish from public life entirely for two years, only appearing on screen in the pre-recorded finale of his hit TV show Car Share in 2018.
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The comic’s continued absence led to three cruel death hoaxes as fans speculated that he had passed away.
But locals in Co Tipperary told how Peter, 46, actually escaped to a secluded house near Lough Derg.
They revealed how the Lancashire-born star — whose mother Deirdre is from Coalisland in Co Tyrone — avoided socialising with those living nearby and kept a low profile on his visits.
But despite his best efforts to go unnoticed, he remained conspicuous thanks to his giant Range Rover.
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One local said: “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.
"But when he did, 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 revealed during an appearance on Ireland’s The Late Late Show in November 2017 that he owns a house in Tipperary.
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He said: “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.”
The TV favourite — who is listed in Guinness World Records as the most successful stand-up comic of all time — was at the top of his game when he disappeared in 2018.
Four months after cancelling his tour, he appeared at a special screening of Car Share to raise money for The Lily Foundation which helps to improve the lives of children with mitochondrial disease.
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In a blog written to promote the event, he spoke movingly of having experienced the charity’s work “first hand”.
But after the fanfare surrounding the screening died down, his Twitter account fell silent and he was not pictured in public for a year.
Accounts for the comic show that the money continued to roll in during his absence, with his fortune in cash and investments growing to £32million. But Peter himself was nowhere to be seen.
And sources close to the star told how at the time he was determined to shut out everyone but his closest family and friends.
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One said: “Peter is a born entertainer, but while he has many famous pals he has always preferred to live life out of the spotlight.
“He is a very funny but down-to-earth bloke. And his family are his world.
“So when faced with a choice between focusing on his family or his career, there was never any question which he would choose.
“He was so excited about going back on tour performing live. But he didn’t hesitate to call off his tour under the circumstances.”
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Peter did not reappear again in public until last April, when snaps taken in Blackpool showed him grinning with fans and riding a vintage-style tram with his wife of 19 years, Susan Gargan.
And it was to be another eight months before he was pictured again, last December. But this time, he seemed ready to rejoin the showbiz world he had shunned for so long.
In September he broke his social media silence to reveal that Phoenix Nights was to be screened in arenas to raise money for charity.
And two months later the elusive funnyman was in the audience at the Crewe Lyceum to support X Factor star Chico and Cannon And Ball in panto Peter Pan.
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Two days later he smiled for photographs at the final performance of Nativity! The Musical in London.
He also used his social media account to slam Channel 5 bosses who aired a show titled as his life story “in his own words” — despite him not being involved at all.
The source went on: “For a time, something like this wouldn’t have even been on his radar.
“But the stand he took — at the same time as he was out on the circuit again — showed he was ready to dip his toe back in the water.”
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Holly makes desperate appeal after daughter loses teddy and 'best friend'News of his showbiz re-emergence finally came this week, as The Sun revealed Peter is making a comeback with a Dance For Life charity tour this spring.
The six dance-a-thon shows to raise money for Cancer Research UK will take place in Liverpool, London and Manchester in April and May.
The source added: “This has been a long time coming, but it will be worth the wait.”
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