Simon Amstell at The Lowry 15th – 16th October

Simon Amstell's Do Nothing tour is a must-have ticket this October.

Simon Amstell is the kind of guy you'd want on your side in an argument. For the last three years he has turned BBC2 music quiz Never Mind The Buzzcocks into essential viewing with his hilariously razor sharp putdowns. Before that, we fought our Sunday morning hangovers to watch as he mauled poor, unsuspecting pop stars on Popworld. Some of us even remember him on Nickelodeon, before he was sacked for being too mean and sarcastic to children.

But somehow, Simon Amstell doesn't come across as a mean sort of bloke. Sardonic, yes. Sarcastic? Without a doubt. But he turns the knife on himself as often as on other people. Following years of acclaimed appearances at the Edinburgh Fringe, the Sunday Times described his first UK stand-up tour in 2008, No Self, as “as close as you can get to a man emotionally and physically disemboweling himself on stage”.

Now he has announced that he is quitting Never Mind The Buzzcocks to concentrate on more live stand up, and to celebrate has announced details of his second UK tour. Do Nothing will have you flinching, cringing and crying with laughter – make sure you get tickets before they sell out.