Tony Hawks abandons trip for family reasons

Tony Hawks has had to abandon his plan to tour Ireland with a fridge for the second time.

He cited family reasons for calling off the adventure, just days after setting off.

In a tweet to his 30,000 followers, he said: ‘Sadly had to leave Ireland and head home due to a family illness. The fridge remains. Not sure when we'll be reunited.’

He had only set off on Wednesday, flying from Exeter, near his Devon home, to Belfast.

Thanks to everyone at Flybe for getting me and my fridge to belfast pic.twitter.com/kmkzPoPjoA

— Tony Hawks (@thefridgeman) May 3, 2017

The comedian pioneered the 'documentary comedy' format in the 1990s when he hitchhiked around the nation, white goods in tow, to win a £100 bet. The book of his exploits, Round Ireland With A Fridge, sold more than 500,000 copies and was even made into a film.

His plan this year was to retrace his steps to meet again the people who helped him to say thank you – and to write a new book, backed by crowdfunding.

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Published: 6 May 2017