Editing Pete McCarthy (section)

===Comedy and television: 1975–1997===
In 1975, McCarthy moved to [[Brighton]], East Sussex, and worked in a community arts project in nearby [[Shoreham-by-Sea]], which led to his first television appearance, on ''Tommy Tractor's Triffic Toyshop Show'' (1977), a show for primary school children.<ref name="Stevens 2004"/> He moved into comedy, co-founded Cliff Hanger Theatre with friends [[Robin Driscoll]], [[Steve McNicholas]], Tony Haase and Rebecca Stevens, and discovered a talent for verbal repartee. He was described as "a brilliantly funny writer and performer". 

The company toured the country performing in pubs,<ref name="Telegraph 2004"/><ref name="Stevens 2004"/> and their first show, ''The Featherstone Flyer'' (1978), was premiered in the Hope and Anchor in [[Islington]], North London. ''The Featherstone Flyer'' was followed by  ''Dig for Victory'' (1980–81), ''Captive Audience'' (1981–82), ''They Came From Somewhere Else!'' (1982–83), ''Gymslip Vicar'' (1984-85), which was nominated for a [[Laurence Olivier Award]],<ref name="Stevens 2004"/> and ''James Bond'' (1988). The success of the stage shows led to the creation of two television series, ''[[They Came From Somewhere Else]]'' (1984) for [[Channel 4]] and ''Mornin' Sarge'' (1989) on [[BBC2]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://genome.ch.bbc.co.uk/dfa2f0eb065345c48d0322ccae1acf02|title = Broadcast - BBC Programme Index| date=8 December 1989 }}</ref>

In 1987, McCarthy began performing solo stand-up comedy, adopting his mother's surname as his stage name after learning of another actor using the name Peter Robinson.<ref name="Telegraph 2004"/> For the 1987 Brighton Festival he created ''Boredom and Black Magic in Hove'', a three-hour coach tour and pub crawl. McCarthy acted as guide, inventing surreal explanations for the sights of Hove.<ref>T [https://liveandletlivebrighton.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/ISSUE-40.pdf ony Miller, interview with McCarthy, The Punter, Issue 40, May 1988, p11]</ref> Audiences "had to jump across the border from Brighton to Hove, where they were handed a glass of sweet sherry. Pete then took them on a tour around Hove, making up the sights as he went along."<ref>Nione Meakin, 'Gavin Henderson remembers Pete McCarthy,' Viva Brighton January 2020, p41</ref> The show won the best cabaret act in the 1987 Zap Club Awards.<ref name="ReferenceA">Kathryn Spencer, 'Room with a Comic View', The Brighton Evening Argus, May 1988</ref>

McCarthy took his next show, ''Live in Your Living Room'', from 1987–8 to the Edinburgh, Melbourne and Brighton festivals. He performed in people's homes in bedrooms, bathrooms and living rooms to audiences of 10-20. The subject of the show was the metaphysical effects of a hangover. The Brighton Argus reviewer wrote, "The hour-long tour-de-force begins with an apparently hungover Peter in bed, surrounded by empty bottles, and transfers to the living room, where he sports a revolting 1970s stretch burgundy outfit, threatens a striptease and then fortunately changes his mind....In between he delivers a quick-fire monologue which develops from the perils of drinking to tragicomic stuff touching on loneliness, death and unrequited love."<ref name="ReferenceA"/>

In 1990 McCarthy explored this theme further in ''The Hangover Show'', directed by [[John Dowie (humourist)|John Dowie]]. He was awarded the Critic's Award for Best Comedy and nominated for the [[Edinburgh Comedy Awards|Perrier Award]] at the [[Edinburgh Festival Fringe]].<ref name="Telegraph 2004"/><ref name="Stevens 2004"/> The show was developed into a one-off television special for [[BBC Scotland]] which was broadcast on New Year's Day 1991.
 
He regularly compered at [[The Comedy Store (London)|The Comedy Store]] in Central London.<ref name="Telegraph 2004"/><ref name="Stevens 2004"/> As a stand-up comedian, McCarthy often drew on his Irish Catholic background as a source of material. The Guardian described him as "someone who took infinite pleasure in the comic strangeness of other human beings." He wrote and performed in a two-man comedy show with the Liverpudlian poet [[Roger McGough]] which toured in Britain and Australia.<ref name="Telegraph 2004"/><ref name="Stevens 2004"/> In the 1980s he began writing television scripts and gags for the comedians [[Mel Smith]] and [[Griff Rhys Jones]].<ref name="Telegraph 2004"/><ref name="Stevens 2004"/> 

As a result of ''The Hangover Show'', McCarthy was given his own unconventional 'alternative' travel show, ''Travelog'', by Channel 4. McCarthy recalled: "We travelled to Zanzibar and China, Fiji and Corsica, Costa Rica and Laos, stood on the edge of volcanoes, had lunch with heroes of the Crete resistance, and got caught up in a military coup in Vanuatu".<ref name="Telegraph 2004"/> He starred in a string of other television and radio shows throughout the 1990's, including [[BBC 2]]'s ''Country Tracks'' (1998); [[Meridian Television]]'s ''The Pier''; and Channel 4's ''[[Desperately Seeking Something]]'' (1995–1998), an exploration of alternative religious movements around the world. For [[BBC Radio 4]], he presented ''[[Breakaway (radio programme)|Breakaway]]'', ''First Impressions'', ''X Marks the Spot'', ''American Beauty'', and ''Cajun Country'', as well as appearing as a regular guest on ''[[Loose Ends (radio)|Loose Ends]]'', ''[[Just a Minute]]'' and ''[[The News Quiz]]''.<ref name="Telegraph 2004"/><ref name="Stevens 2004"/>