A virtuoso musician has found international fame after a video of him shredding a guitar solo went viral.

Kenneth Petrie, 60, was performing Tom Petty’s Runnin’ Down a Dream with his band Mr Spanky and the Hipthrusters while a member of the audience filmed them.

Due to a mix-up involving a humorous biography on the band’s website, The Reverend, or Kenny as he prefers to be called, and his bandmates have become internet stars.

The video has been shared more than 100,000 times on Facebook, received 240,000 views on Youtube and some online publications even ran a story about the hard-rocking “catholic priest”.

Mr Petrie, is not actually an ordained priest, just an expert guitarist of 55 years and counting, who was given the nickname by his bandmates as a Blues Brothers inspired joke.

“They asked me to write a biography for the website and I never got round to it so they made it up,” he said.

“Myself and the band have been getting messages of support from across the world, even in different languages.

“We have had a few agents approach us so we may well end up playing a bit further afield in the future, but the band and the music will not change.”

Mr Spankey and the Hipthrusters have been touring Essex since 2004 and have entertained crowds during Braintree Carnival in the past.

Mr Petrie said: “We are just a good time band and we have a laugh while playing, and the punters do as well. If the video ends up getting a few more people into the places where we gig then that is a good thing.”

Lead guitarist Mr Petrie is part of the house band at The Boars Head, in High Street, where he also performs with his band on Saturday, March 10.

Singer Mark Carroll said: “We feel the whole thing is quite humbling because we have always just done what we wanted to do.

"I have been in lots of bands and so has Kenny but I haven’t been in another band where things clicked like this.”

Find out more about the band here. 

Watch the video below: