IN A short space of time, the Hairy Bikers have become something of an institution.

The loveable duo of Dave Myers (the little one) and Si King (the Hagrid-lookalike) have become a regular fixture on our TV screens with their various cookery programmes which have put the fun into food.

Now they are back with a new live show — Larger Than Life — a chance for them to show off their new slimline selves to an audience.

For the duo, who at one time tipped the scales at 17st 2lb and 19st 6lb respectively have been on a highly-publicised and highly-public diet. Dave has lost over 11 inches off his waist and both men have lost over three stone.

“I’m managing to keep the weight off,” said Dave. “It’s not easy and I can go up and bit and then lose it again but that’s what most people experience. We both certainly feel a lot fitter and we need to be with a live show to do.”

The first Hairy Bikers show was a mixture of anecdotes about how the pair became friends and their early career, comedy and some on-stage cooking.

“This is a completely new show,” said Dave. “It will feature stories from our trips around the world plus some clips you won’t have seen on TV.

“And yes, we will be doing some cooking on stage. I think it really adds to the intimate atmosphere when you can smell the food throughout the theatre.

“We really had to up the ante with this show and it’s going to be a good ’un.

“With the first show there were no real expectations as we hadn’t done anything like it before but it went down so well that we have to do even better this time.

“There will be some daft stuff and you’ll even get the chance to see us doing a tango.

“We appreciate that times are hard and that if people do come for a night out they want to be entertained throughout and feel they’ve had value for money.

“We will certainly be doing our best to give them that. Since we’ve both lost so much weight, it’s actually given us more options as to what we can do without us being out of breath all the time.”

  • The Hairy Bikers: Larger Than Life, King George’s Hall, Blackburn, Thursday, November 8, details from 0844 847 166.