Michael McIntyre makes his WWE debut

Comic is a masked wrestler in tag-team fight

Michael McIntyre has made his WWE debut.

The comedian stepped into the ring as a masked wrestler at Manchester's AO Arena on Tuesday night.

He appeared as part of a duo called the Manchester Maniacs to take on the tag pro team New Day, aka Kofi Kingston and Xavier Wood – before taking off his mask to reveal his true identity.

The 49-year-old then revealed that the appearance was being filmed for his BBC One programme Michael McIntyre’s Big Show and told the crowd: ‘I hope people understand how little we contributed to that last fight.’

Two brothers, Charlie and Dexter Cross from Blackpool, then appeared in the ring – and discovered, to their surprise, that their father Ben was the other masked wrestler.

The family have spent years fundraising for the Royal Manchester Children’s Hospital which saved Charlie's life when he contracted sepsis and necrotizing fasciitis – a rare but serious bacterial infection that attacks the body’s soft tissue – at the age of four in 20145.

McIntyre said that the Big Show and the WWE would be donating £10,000 to the cause following the stunt, saying: ‘They do absolutely amazing things.’