Northern Ireland

Patrick Kielty reveals he was once caught driving over 132mph on Northern Ireland road

Co Down comedian and TV presenter Patrick Kielty
Co Down comedian and TV presenter Patrick Kielty Co Down comedian and TV presenter Patrick Kielty

COMEDIAN Patrick Kielty has revealed he was once caught by police for driving at more than 132mph near Belfast.

The presenter, from Dundrum, Co Down, was clocked at almost double the speed limit in an Alfa Romeo GTV in the early nineties.

He told theFuelling Around podcast that he thought the car behind him wanted to race, but it was actually an unmarked police car.

"I ended up getting caught doing the highest recorded speed on a Northern Ireland road which, at that stage, was 132(mph) I think," he said.

"This has to be 25 years ago. We’re still kind of talking pre-ceasefire Northern Ireland. In terms of what was taking up court time, speeding kind of wasn’t.

"It was a lovely summer’s evening. It was about eight o’clock, there just wasn’t a car on the motorway.

"Coming out of Belfast I just eased round this corner and there was nothing there. I had a straight in front of me and I just kept putting my foot down.

"I didn’t really know how fast the car was and I suddenly looked and just went ‘wow, wow’.

"There was a car behind me and I’m thinking 'what’s he in? He must want a race.' Turns out that was an unmarked police car. The idea of stupidity, new car and speed; it was a hefty, hefty fine and I just about got away with the books. A lesson learned lads, a lesson learned."

The father-of-two went on to escape a driving ban in 2008 despite being clocked doing over 100mph in Scotland.

He also told the podcast he once crashed into a temporary army checkpoint on the outskirts of Dundrum six months after he passed his driving test.

He said two army armoured Land Rovers had pulled across a country road but there was no light to show it was a checkpoint.

Kielty said his mother's Volvo was "totalled" after he crashed it into one of the Land Rovers.

"You're got 12 petrified kids, the same age as you, soldiers, crapping, thinking that some guy is running into your checkpoint," he said.

He added that police came to the scene of the accident but no further action was taken.

Fuelling Around, sponsored by motoring insurer Adrian Flux, is available on Apple, Spotify, YouTube and AudioBoom as well as several other podcast outlets.