Joe Lycett: 'If you want diverse voices, you’ve got to put some money into finding them'

"The TV is a modest size – about 20 inches. Next to the telly, I’ve got this new mushroom-growing device, because I love growing things. I’m doing pink oyster mushrooms; they’re delicious. On the other side, there’s an easel where I paint, and there’s a massive canvas on there, which I haven’t done anything on because I’m scared of it.

"There are a couple of BAFTAs. There's baby stuff – a pram, loads of nappies [Lycett and his partner welcomed a son in October last year]. Then out the window, on the street outside my house in Birmingham, I can see an increasing pile of bin bags [due to the bin workers’ strike]."

Are you enjoying fatherhood?

"I love it. I’m in a very happy, golden era of my life right now."

What have you watched recently?

"Big Boys is amazing, and Alma's Not Normal is so beautifully done – sitcoms are having a resurgence. We're also doing a lot of baby cinema [special screenings for adults and babies/young children]. Now it’s a family activity, it’s so fun. We really enjoyed Black Bag, but Captain America: Brave New World was one of the worst things I’ve ever seen in my life, and Mufasa: The Lion King was a travesty to the Lion King legacy.

"In Joe Lycett's United States of Birmingham, you travel around the US to other Birminghams to form official friendship agreements with as many as you can."

What was it like growing up in your Birmingham?

"I thought it was s**t. I really couldn’t wait to leave. I had a very happy childhood, but there wasn’t loads to do. There was a show on BBC Three called Sinchronicity set in Manchester, and it looked fun so I moved there. I thought, 'I’ll turn my back on Birmingham,' but then I realised Birmingham actually has an amazing art scene and loads of cool places to eat and drink."

Do you feel better when you’re in Birmingham?

"I feel a lot calmer in Birmingham, with its pace and the greenery. I always called London 'Silly Town', because I go there to record for TV, or an awards thing, or something ridiculous happens. Then I go back to Birmingham and live a relatively normal life… surrounded by my BAFTAs."

Who's your favourite Brummie?

"Alison Hammond, because she’s so funny, smart and lovely, and you can put her in front of anyone and she’ll make a friend out of them. She’s so interested in people and deserves all the success she's had. Carl Chinn is a local historian, and he writes very well about the real Peaky Blinders. He feels the show glamorised them in a way they shouldn’t be, because they were just horrible b*****ds."

Are the creative industries still too London-centric?

"I think it’s getting better, but if you want to get interesting, diverse voices, you’ve got to put some money into finding them. Without that, it’s only people that have parental support or independent wealth that end up working in the creative industries.

"I wonder whether I would have ever made a career out of what I do if my friend hadn’t let me stay with her mum – Oscar-winning costume designer Jenny Beavan – in a house in Peckham when I first started doing stand-up… I still rent a room there. She refers to herself as my "other mother'."

You’ve become known for your comedy activism. Do you think more celebrities should use their platform as a force for change?

"I think everyone should use their lives to make things better, not just celebrities. But also, no pressure, because the stunts do take their toll. You make enemies and sometimes I question, 'Am I really prepared to create those enemies and deal with the flak of all of that? Have I got the resources, the headspace and the emotional stability to do these things?' Because it’s a bloody headache!"

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Joe Lycett's United States of Birmingham begins on Tuesday 22nd April on Sky Max and NOW.

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