A STAND-up comedian who also carved a reputation as a charity champion has taken his final curtain call after a showbusiness career spanning nearly 40 years.

Stevie Faye, a 69-year-old grandfather-of-four living in Whiston, has rubbed shoulders with some of the country's top comedians.

But he opted to bow out quietly in a benefit concert for the Liverpool dockers in Edinburgh Park, Liverpool.

From an accidental beginning when he stumbled into the comedy circuit by filling a lunchtime pub spot for £4, the former lorry driver certainly travelled a long way.

Only weeks after having his first audition in the late 1950s, Scouser Stevie appeared on the talent-spotting show 'Opportunity Knocks' before going on to perform for the troops in the Persian Gulf and South Africa.

During the 1960s and 1970s the 'Mr Clean' of comedy - not for him the blue routines favoured by some - filled regular stand-up spots in a number of Northern clubs where he frequently rubbed shoulders with household names such as Harry Seacombe, Ken Dodd, Les Dawson and Cilla Black. And at the peak of his career he appeared before the Queen at a Royal Variety Performance at the Empire Theatre, Liverpool, in 1973.

But to most, Stevie was renowned for his massive fund-raising efforts, with no club or event too small for the big-hearted funnyman.

And despite all these achievements, Stevie steps out of the limelight with few regrets. He told the Star: "I suppose I will miss the excitement of getting ready to go on stage and the sense of adventure, wondering what the crowd is going to be like. But I've had good times and bad times and at the end of the day I've managed to achieve everything I have ever wanted to."

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