John Oliver gets own satirical show
Jon Stewart's Daily Show sidekick, John Oliver, is quitting the programme to host his own weekly satirical show on HBO.
The UK-born comic has been a regular on the hit US show since 2006 and took over from Stewart on a temporary basis this year when he took time off to make a film.
Oliver's show, described as "a satirical look at the week in news, politics and current events", starts next year.
He said: "I' m incredibly excited to be joining HBO, especially as I presume this means I get free HBO now. I want to thank Comedy Central, and everyone at The Daily Show for the best seven and a half years of my life. But most of all, I'd like to thank Jon Stewart. He taught me everything I know. In fact, if I fail in the future, it's entirely his fault."
Michael Lombardo, president of HBO Programming, said: " We weren't otherwise searching for another weekly talk show, but when we saw John Oliver handling host duties on The Daily Show we knew that his singular perspective and distinct voice belonged on HBO.
"We are extremely excited that John has agreed to make HBO his home."
Oliver, who is practically unknown in his native UK, started out as a stand-up and performed at the Edinburgh Festival before moving to the United States.
He grew up in Bedfordshire, went to Cambridge University and was a contemporary of actors David Mitchell and Richard Ayoade in the Footlights theatrical club.
He plays a recurring character, Professor Ian Duncan, in the US television series Community and regularly works with comic Andy Zaltzman on weekly podcast The Bugle.
