We could certainly all do with a laugh and comedian Tez Ilyias – called "Blackburn’s Chris Rock" by The Guardian – is in Oxford next week.

Tez, star of BBC Three sitcom Man Like Mobeen and host of the Tez O’Clock Show on Channel 4, performs material on politics, religion and culture mixed with anecdotes about what it’s like to grow up in a British Asian family up north.

His sense of humour is partly inspired by his father (“We love dark jokes in my family”) and the community in his native Blackburn.

Locals tend to have a dry, sarcastic humour, Tez said, but he added: “My comedy is about a lot of things.”

He got into comedy when he moved to London and tried to find a creative writing course as a hobby while working as a civil servant. He ended up on an open mic course instead, and in 2015 he achieved phenomenal success with his debut stand up tour TEZ Talks which led to his own Radio 4 series.

Ilyas has a slickness reminiscent of US comics, and has been compared to Chris Rock, named by many comics as the best comedian.

“I love Chris Rock," he said. "It’s beyond anything that I would describe myself as. But when people come in they’ll have huge expectations…”

Tez, who has appeared on panel shows Mock the Week and the Last Leg, was also inspired by US shows the Daily Show, Saturday Night Live and Jimmy Fallon for the Tez O’Clock Show which he described as a “mish mash of different genres, satire, sketches, social commentary”.

The show is on hiatus but “when Channel 4 is ready I’ll be waiting”, he said.

Tez’ hotly anticipated debut novel The Secret Diary of a British Muslim Aged 13 3/4, came out in April.

It's a dramatic rollercoaster of a teenage memoir he wrote in lockdown.

“It felt like an achievement like ‘I did something useful’ I didn’t just watch tons of Netflix, although that’s useful too.”

But Tez said: "I have so missed my day job... that I do in the evenings. I could not wait to tour the country and celebrate our freedom with my fans.”

He is now midway through his nationwide tour show Vicked.

He said: “I’ve been to Oxford a couple of times and the audience is good.”

So what can we expect next week?

“Expect mega laughs, happy groans and cheeky provocations.”

Tell us a joke then.

"What do you call an Asian archaeologist? Indian Jones."

Tez is at The Glee Club on Wednesday October 27, 8pm. Tickets from tezilyas.com