Former America's Got Talent star Paul Zerdin is set to bring his cheeky brand of stand-up puppetry, and his ‘sponge family’ to three Kent theatres.

After winning LWT’s The Big Big Talent Show in 1996, he went on to be crowned the winner of the tenth season of America’s Got Talent in 2015, which meant collecting the million-dollar prize, and led to him scoring his own Las Vegas residency at the legendary Planet Hollywood with his show Mouthing Off.

After performing for the Queen at the Royal Variety, playing the prestigious Just For Laughs Festival in Montreal and being heckled by a golden retriever, he's back on home soil with new solo show Paul Zerdin’s Puppet Party.

His characters - peppy tween Sam, demanding newborn Baby and old man Albert – have become stars themselves. And he has new ones, including a bodyguard and an urban fox.

“I describe it as stand-up comedy where I happen to use puppets," he said. “It takes a long, long time to develop new characters – it takes me years. When I was working in Las Vegas, the fox was actually going to be a coyote for American audiences. But by the time I had thought about the character properly the Vegas show was over, and I thought: I know, why not make it an urban fox?’”

His favourite, he admits, is Albert. “He’s got selective deafness and he can talk utter nonsense and get away with it," he said. "My father is 92 and he gives me an amazing amount of material for Albert.”

Paul will be at the Hazlitt Theatre, Maidstone on Thursday, October 17 and Leas Cliff Hall, Folkestone on Friday, October 18. Book at parkwoodtheatres.co.uk or leascliffhall.co.uk

The show is also at Theatre Royal Margate on Friday, October 25. Book at theatreroyalmargate.com

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