Peter Kay to publish new memoir Big Adventures On The Small Screen

Thursday 2nd March 2023, 8:54am

New book Peter Kay - T.V.: Big Adventures On The Small Screen will be published in September 2023
The comedian's third memoir, it'll focus on his time working in television, including Phoenix Nights and Car Share
He says: "I'd wanted for years to write about my obsession for TV and working in it"

Peter Kay's new autobiography, which will focus on his work in the world of television, will be published in September 2023.

HarperCollins has won the bidding war to publish this third memoir from the superstar comedian, confirming today: "HarperCollins Publishers has acquired World English language rights to T.V.: Big Adventures On The Small Screen, by Britain's best-loved comedian, Peter Kay."

They explain: "T.V. marks Peter's long-awaited return to the page, with a nostalgic love letter to a childhood spent idolising 'the wooden box in the corner of the front room' that went on to inspire a lifetime's work in the industry.

"T.V. is an incredible jaunt through 40 years of television: from tea-making at Granada, to behind the scenes on Phoenix Nights, Max & Paddy and his BAFTA-winning turn as John Redmond in Car Share. Charming, funny and utterly unforgettable, this is Peter Kay back and at his best."

The comedian's first book - The Sound Of Laughter - is still the biggest-selling hardback autobiography of all time, selling "well over a million copies" across all print editions since publication in 2006.

Kay first announced he was writing a new book in September 2021, to follow on from 2009's Saturday Night Peter, which charted his rise to fame. He said at the time of the writing process: "It's been a real joy recalling the memories. There's over 20 years of stories about filming series like Phoenix Nights and Max & Paddy's Road To Nowhere. Appearing on chat shows like Parkinson, at The Queen's Golden Jubilee and sharing letters from Ronnie Barker. We wrote to each other for years as pen-pals until he passed away."

The Bolton-born comedian is currently performing his new stand-up show Better Late Than Never, which will run until the end of 2025. Tickets for the arena tour broke records when they went on sale, with millions being bought in days.

Peter Kay said today: "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 twenty-five years both in front and behind the camera, and I hope people will enjoy reading about the journey as much as I've enjoyed writing it."

Publisher Kate Elton adds: 'All of us at HarperNonFiction are absolutely over the moon to be publishing Peter. He's quite simply one of the most beloved entertainers in Britain, and T.V. is a hilariously funny, wonderfully warm journey through the popular culture of the last forty years. Chock-full of TV gossip, brilliant one-liners and, of course, irresistible observational comedy, it's exactly the book every Peter Kay fan has been waiting for."

T.V.: Big Adventures On The Small Screen will be published on 28th September 2023 in hardback, audiobook and eBook formats, and the release will be "supported by a huge marketing and publicity campaign". It is available to pre-order now.

Peter Kay - T.V.: Big Adventures On The Small Screen

By Peter Kay

The long-awaited return of the comedy national treasure.

Blockbusters, Baywatch ... Mastermind, Moonlighting ... Porridge, Parkinson ... Peter Kay takes you on a journey into the wonders of TV - back to the days when Dusty Bin was a household name, Robin of Sherwood was a pin-up and the Brookside siege was the event of the year. For a young telly-loving Peter growing up in Bolton, TV meant Sunday bath nights with a black-and-white portable, the unbridled excitement of the new Christmas TV guide and his elderly neighbour's inconvenient hearing problem.

Here, for the first time, he collects his TV memories and adventures together in this brilliant book. Join Peter as he finds success on the small screen, leaving his own unique footprint in the golden age of TV: from making tea at Granada Studios and marching along to (Is This the Way to) Amarillo to hanging out in the Rovers Return, having run-ins with Bernard Manning and starring in possibly the worst Doctor Who episode of all time. You'll go behind the scenes of the legendary Phoenix Nights, take The Road to Nowhere with Max & Paddy and discover how Peter created his BAFTA-winning performance in Car Share.

So sit back and enjoy a journey through the wonderful world of television. Endearing, sidesplittingly funny and utterly unforgettable - T.V. sees Peter Kay at his vivid, nostalgic and hilarious best.

First published: Thursday 28th September 2023

Hardback

eBook

Audiobook