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Jason Manford has been forced to shell out £1.1 million to settle a huge tax bill, after a costly divorce led him to sell parts of his property empire.

The comedian, 45, was handed a hefty bill for PAYE and National Insurance, on his holding company Invisible Man Ltd, which was placed into voluntary liquidation in 2017.

Documents by Companies House show that Jason was forced to sell parts of his 10-home property portfolio to pay both the huge tax bill, and the costs of his divorce settlement following his split from his first wife Catherine.

Jason banked more than £3million from the sales to help him settle the bill for his 2017 marital split.

The funnyman had built himself a 10-home property empire by buying up homes in the Greater Manchester area to rent out.

Alongside his comedy career, the father-of-six has become a regular stand-in presenter on BBC Radio 2, and this year had a leading role in the UK premiere of Broadway Musical Something Rotten in Manchester.

Jason Manford has been forced to shell out £1.1 million to settle a huge tax bill, after a costly divorce led him to sell parts of his property empire

A report to Companies House obtained by The Sun said: 'The principal activity of the company was that of a holding Company, which held a portfolio of investment properties.'

The Daily Mail has contacted a representative for Jason Manford for comment.

In recent months, Jason has been showing off the results of his three stone weight loss, which he lost over the course of 18 months after starting up padel tennis.

He said: 'I've been on it with padel. I've lost probably about three stone, I think, in around 18 months.

'I got into it, and then I got a bit obsessed with it, and we've got a little fitness group, me and a load of dads.'

Jason added to The Sun his doctor had warned him he would need his knees replaced if he didn't lose weight, adding that they were 'sore all the time'.

He continued to tell the publication: 'I was able to get personal training, I was able to see a nutritionist and, you know, do it properly.

'But fundamentally, irrespective of being able to throw some money at it, actually, that WhatsApp group with me brother and a couple of mates, and just every so often posting a picture of, like, one of them's just done a run, or one of them, you know, we're all in the same boat, we're just trying, you need somebody else to just try and be there for you.'

The comedian was handed a hefty bill for PAYE and National Insurance, on his holding company Invisible Man Ltd, which was placed into voluntary liquidation in 2017

When fans first noticed Jason's weight-loss last year they flooded him with gushing messages, as one penned: 'You look loads younger?!!'... 'Looking very trim!'... 'Looking lean'... 'You look loads younger?!'

'Are you sure you’re Jason Manford? You don’t look like him, you look brilliant!'

One even flat out asked Jason if he has been taking weight loss jab Ozempic to achieve his appearance, writing: 'Okay Jase spill the beans. Are you on O jabs?'

Speaking about the relationship he has with his weight, the Mirror reported Jason said: 'I think I’ve thought about my weight every day of my adult life.'

He explained that small things such as trying on clothes that don't fit or getting out of breath playing with his children caused him to reconsider his lifestyle.

Jason claimed he tried a variety of diets to help control his weight, but it was only when he stopped eating so much and started to move more that he started to notice a difference.

While battling to cut down his weight, Jason said he received support from both his family, and the Jason Manford Weight Loss Support Group on Facebook he originally set up back in 2017.

Speaking about his weight loss, Jason continued: 'I get a bit of a buzz out of it.'

Jason used to use his weight to his comedic advantage while performing, even adopting the nickname 'the fat Michael Owen' after being heckled at the age of 17.

He said: 'I started to write jokes about being overweight – you can take the power away from the bully or the heckler – they were my defence.'

The comedian revealed he used to believe that larger comedians were the funniest because they had signs of having struggled in life - and that he was concerned about not being found funny if he were slimmer.