OMID Djalili, the Iranian-British stand-up comedian, actor and writer, will present his latest tour show, Schmuck For A Night, at the Grand Opera House, York, on Sunday, February 5 next year.

His credits range from Hollywood roles to television parts and West End stage performances and latterly he has starred in Dickensian on BBC1, Stan Lee's Lucky Man on Sky 1 and Going Forward, with Jo Brand, on BBC4.

Describing his role as Mr Venus in Dickensian, Djalili said: "He's a taxidermist who makes a fleeting appearance in Our Mutual Friend, Dickens’s last novel. He has an inappropriate liaison with a police horse. A real shame they didn’t include that story line in the BBC1 series."

Djalili turned 50 last September, prompting this response when asked what he would say to his 25-year-old self, just starting out in comedy? "Forget everything you learned in theatre studies," he said. "Nuanced variations on the same screeching Arab accent will get you further than you ever imagined."

How has Djalili's comedy progressed in those 25 years? "My career has evolved like the weird little prehistoric horse the Hypo-hippus, which used to have three toes but then developed hooves. So no-one really cares or can say for certain it actually ever existed," he said.

Tickets for Djalili's 7.30pm gig are on sale at £24.25 on 0844 871 3024 or at atgtickets.com/york