So much for any Daily Show succession plan talk. On the heels of his impressive stint as The Daily Show fill-in host this past summer, the program’s veteran correspondent John Oliver is jumping ship, landing his own topical comedy talk show on HBO and leaving the Emmy-winning Comedy Central program that made him a star. His last regular Daily Show appearance is expected to be on Dec. 19. The HBO show, which like the Daily Show will take a satirical look at the week in news, politics and current events, will debut in 2014, airing on Sunday nights. It joins HBO’s long-running Real Time With Bill Maher, which airs on Fridays. “We weren’t otherwise searching for another weekly talk show, but when we saw John Oliver handling host duties on The Daily Show, we knew that his singular perspective and distinct voice belonged on HBO,” said HBO’s Michael Lombardo. Added Oliver, “I’m incredibly excited to be joining HBO, especially as I presume this means I get free HBO now. I want to thank Comedy Central, and everyone at The Daily Show for the best seven and a half years of my life. But most of all, I’d like to thank Jon Stewart. He taught me everything I know. In fact, if I fail in the future, it’s entirely his fault.”

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Oliver, repped by Avalon Management, WME and attorney Leigh Brecheen, has been a Daily Show standout since joining the show in 2006 after a standup career in his native England. With no permanent anchor chair vacancy at the Daily Show for at least a couple of more years, til the end of Stewart’s current contract, or even more, the acerbic Brit has found a hosting opportunity elsewhere. There has been a flurry of newcomers in late-night over the past year or so, with TBS (Pete Homes Show), Comedy Central (@midnight) and FX (now defunct Totally Biased and Brand X) all launching new daily late-night programs.

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