Joe Lycett proves to get a laugh abroad sometimes a Brummie has to pull out the Black Country comedy card

The second city's cultural phenomenon Joe Lycett proved this on his latest TV series - The United States of Birmingham.

When trying to get an American trucker to laugh, he had to pull out the Black Country card out of his comedy pocket to get the guffaws going.  

Joe told the trucker a few choice Black Country phrases and they were on the high road to friendship, which is what the whole series is about - uniting differing peoples from the across the world but who happen to live in a place called Birmingham. 

Kings Heath native Joe said: "In 2024 I went on an insane voyage across North America visiting all the places called Birmingham (there are LOADS of them), in a quest to unite them all with an internationally recognised Treaty of Friendship.

"The journey took me to towns and cities across multiple states, meeting eclectic Americans and also a man called Wayne from Dudley, discovering extraordinary links with Birmingham UK and making the unlikely discovery that Taylor Swift is a Brummie."

And in an exclusive clip of the forthcoming Sky Max show for the Express & Star, Joe can be seen going all American Gothic in Iowa. 

His host is a female bus driver, who is not phased about jokes going over her head, but did Joe tell her about that time when bus fares were 2p? Or is he too old for that. 

A spokesman for Sky is delighted with the new series.

He said: "It’s no secret that the nation’s Mummy, Joe Lycett, adores Birmingham. In his self-appointed role as the second city’s ambassador and, with the blessing of the actual Lord Mayor of Birmingham, everyone’s favourite comedy activist is on a mission to put Birmingham firmly back on the map – in fact, all over the map. 

"To do that, Joe is heading to North America, home to no fewer than eighteen Birminghams - stretching from Canada’s Saskatchewan province, down the East Coast, through the Midwest and into the Deep South.

"Joe will explore their history, their collective Brummie cultural commonalities and form official 'Friendship Agreements' with as many Birminghams as he can. At the climax of the series, Joe will invite some of his new Brummie chums back to his own Birmingham for what will undoubtedly become an annual global event – the International Day of Birmingham."

Joe Lycett’s United States of Birmingham available to watch now on Sky Max and streaming service NOW.