COMEDIAN Peter Kay has become the latest Bolton celebrity to pen an autobiography.

The popular television star says the book, which focuses on his life before he hit the big time, will be published at the end of the summer.

His announcement comes just days after Bolton boxer Amir Khan announced he was writing his own life history.

Kay has signed a deal with The Random House Group which will publish the autobiography in hardback.

According to the company's publishing director Mark Booth, the book includes observations of family life that are said to be reminiscent of acclaimed Yorkshire playwright Alan Bennett.

He said: "We are absolutely thrilled to be publishing Peter Kay and we are confident that the book will be a huge critical and commercial success."

Peter who was born, bred and still lives in Bolton has written about his early life in the town, which was the setting for his BAFTA-award winning Channel 4 series Phoenix Nights.

When asked about the book, Peter said today: "I'm busy writing. Do you want this book finished or not?"

Kay's rise to fame began in the 1990s. He entered and subsequently won Channel 4's So You Think You're Funny contest in 1997, and his first semi-professional stand-up appearances were at the 1998 Edinburgh Fringe festival, where he was nominated for the Perrier Award.

His first television series for Channel 4 was That Peter Kay Thing, in which Peter played 15 characters.

In addition to writing and acting in Phoenix Nights, Kay also directed the second series. It saw him achieve critical acclaim as well as mainstream appreciation.

In 2004 his DVD, That Peter Kay Thing, became the fastest-selling title of the year and the DVD of Phoenix Nights is the best-selling comedy DVD ever.

Kay also embarked on Britain's biggest stand-up tour. His 2002 Mum Wants A Bungalow tour smashed box office records and sold out at a rate of a seat every two seconds, bringing in audiences of more than half a million For Comic Relief, Kay promoted a re-release of Tony Christie's 1971 hit Is This the Way to Amarillo.

Kay appeared in the music video that accompanied the song and the single went on to be number one in the UK Singles Charts for seven consecutive weeks. It raised more than £2 million for Comic Relief.

Amir Khan has signed a book deal worth £500,000 for his autobiography, which is being ghost written by Kevin Garside of the Daily Telegraph.