Peter Kay reveals 'shameful' moment binge eating disorder spiralled out of control
Comedian Peter Kay opened up about his '48-year battle' to lose weight and revealed the moment he hit rock bottom.
16 September 2025, 12:45
Bolton-born comedian Peter Kay shed light on his '48-year battle' to lose weight, revealing the moment he hit rock bottom in the throes of his binge eating disorder.
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Peter Kay has opened up about the 'shameful' moment he realised his binge eating disorder had spiralled completely out of control.
The Bolton-born comedian, 52, shed light on his long-term battle with his weight during a heartfelt interview with Sara Cox at The Lowry theatre in Salford this week.
Revealing the desperate lengths he went to to get a satisfying food fix, he spoke candidly about the moment he hit rock bottom during a public outing with his wife.
The now visibly slimmer star, who has reportedly lost around four stone, also explained how his dietary issues were deep-rooted in childhood due to his mother's unusual feeding habits.
Addressing his svelte new frame, host Sara asked the Phoenix Nights creator if he had ever deliberately tried to shed the pounds as he guest-starred in her event 'In Conversation With...'.
Peter joked: "Only for the first 48 years of my life. Yeah, I had to, eventually, because you start thinking about your health and things like that, don’t you?
"I tried everything. Good God in heaven. I mean, you go to flaming weight-loss groups and stuff like that. I joined Slimming World and WeightWatchers. I did all of them."
Despite those methods seemingly not working for the comedy legend, one slimming method has made a drastic impact, shown by his dramatic change in appearance.
Reports claimed Peter may have undergone gastric band surgery, while other rumours suggested weight-loss injections could have played a part.
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The married celebrity didn't confirm to Sara exactly how he had dropped so much weight, but he did reveal the moment he realised his unhealthy habits had to change.
He recalled a trip to the cinema with his wife Susan to see iconic blockbuster The Green Mile, during which he felt a sudden pang of hunger.
Peter explained: "We were sitting there and I thought, I fancy a hotdog. So I said to Susan, ‘I’m going to the toilet’ and I nipped out, went down and bought a hotdog.
"I was doing really well with this diet, but I’m so bad with willpower. I had this hotdog and I caught a glimpse of myself reflected in, ironically, a framed poster for Babe.
"I thought, look at you — what are you doing? You’re doing really well on this diet, you should be ashamed of yourself.
"And I got it and threw it in the bin — and just as it was about to hit the bin liner, I grabbed it and still ate it."
Harking back to his food habits as young boy in the 1970s, Peter put some of his issues down to the diet he grew up on whilst living with his mum Deirdre in Lancashire.
He added: "Even when I was in my pram, apparently my mum used to get a meat pie from the market hall and put it on my knee, and I’d be there eating it.
"My mum used to bring pies in for me at primary school. She’d go in and she’d say to the dinner ladies, ‘Can you give this to Peter?'
"Everyone would be queueing up and the dinner ladies would be like, ‘Your mum’s been in with a pie’.
"She used to hide the biscuits in our house, but I knew where she’d hid them. I used to have my mates round for a brew and I’d reach inside the tumble drier and get a packet of digestives out, like it was normal."
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