English comedian Russell Howard to perform in Palmerston North

English comedian Russell Howard is bringing his Respite show to Palmerston North on February 11.

Fresh from managed isolation, English comedian Russell Howard will be the first performer to grace the Regent on Broadway's stage for 2021.

Howard is best known for his TV shows, Russell Howard's Good News and The Russell Howard Hour, and his appearances on the topical panel TV show, Mock the Week.

His 2017 Netflix show, Recalibrate, explored politics, porn, social media and his own shortcomings.

His 2021 tour, Respite, is billed as Howard making sense of a world that's spinning out of control.

Howard first came to New Zealand at the age of 23 supporting fellow British comedian Lee Mack, his first time travelling for stand-up comedy.

He told the New Zealand Herald in 2017 his first visit to Aotearoa was "real pinch yourself kind of stuff", performing shows in festivals halfway around the world and hanging out with international and local comedy legends - "I watched Kill Bill with Bret [McKenzie] from the [Flight of the] Conchords."

Now 40, Howard has ascended to the top of the comedy world, with Britain's The Telegraph describing him as "one of the most successful stand-ups of his generation".

British newspaper The Sunday Times says Howard "has grown darker, angrier and more satirical on stage. His sets deal with everything from foreign policy to his fear of death, and he rages as much as he teases."

His Palmerston North show is on February 11; his shows in Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch have sold out.

No international comedians have visited New Zealand for nine months.