[bitontheslide]

Thousands of comedy fans gave Peter Kay a standing ovation as he made his live return after several years away, with two quickly sold-out charity shows at the Manchester Apollo on Saturday.

"I've never in my life had a standing ovation when I came on," he joked. "I'm going to go away for four more years."

The Bolton comic was taking part in two Q&A sessions, called Doing it for Laura, at the 3,500 capacity venue.

It was to raise money for 20-year-old Laura Nuttall's brain cancer treatment.

The live gigs, which sold out within 30 minutes on release last week, marked a rare public appearance for one of the nation's best-loved comedians. And Kay said that getting back on stage was like "getting in a hot bath".

In late 2017, the Phoenix Nights star cancelled his tour and all future work projects due to "unforeseen family circumstances".

He returned the year after with the finale of his BBC TV show Car Share, but has not appeared live since.

This weekend's matinee and evening shows were staged in aid of Manchester University student Ms Nuttall, who was diagnosed with having an aggressive form of brain cancer - glioblastoma multiforme - in October 2018, during her first term at King's College London.

Brain scans showed six tumours, and she was told she had 12-18 months to live.

Since then, Ms Nuttall, who was in the audience on Saturday, has been undergoing immunotherapy in Germany as one of the few avenues of treatment available, alongside a costly complex cell vaccination programme, with each jab costing £27,000.

At the Apollo, her sister Gracie introduced Kay and told the audience their family was "eternally grateful" to them for "potentially saving my sister's life".

Soon after her initial diagnosis, Laura's mum Nicola said the family received an unexpected call from Kay, who she had previously met nearly 20 years ago when working at Granada television.

"He just called up out of the blue and said, 'How can I help?'" she said previously.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-58129447