John Oliver: Topical humor from a stand-up British import

John Oliver’s career bloomed before President Trump took office, but it’s certainly been fertile fields for HBO’s “Last Week Tonight with John Oliver” in 2017.

The British import, seen previously on Comedy Central’s “The Daily Show” and NBC’s sitcom “Community” and heard as Vanity Smurf in two Smurf movies, has a ready stand-up act, too. He’ll help Foxwoods Resort Casino close out “the year of the Donald” with four comedy performances at the Grand Theater. Oliver’s successful HBO Sunday show is not only very funny (if you’re not politically sensitive), it skewers the high and mighty with a journalist’s attention to facts and a comic’s (or radio host’s) flair for ranting about hypocrisy. The anchor desk rants are delivered not only with visuals and occasional silliness, of course, but also (to borrow from “A Christmas Story”) with Oliver weaving a tapestry of obscenities.

Can Oliver do straight stand-up? Well, he has extraordinarily good diction, he was a cutting political stand-up guy in the U.K. and he won the Breakout Award at the Aspen Comedy Festival in 2007. Oh, and there’s a certain tweeter-inchief providing new material daily, not to mention grabby congressmen and greedy corporate villains.

Grand Theater, Foxwoods Resort Casino, 350 Trolley Line Blvd., Mashantucket. Friday, Dec. 29, 7:30 and 10:30 p.m.; Saturday, Dec. 30, 7 and 10 p.m. $89, $79. 860-3123000. foxwoods.com

HBO / Eric Liebowitz John Oliver on the set of “Last Week Tonight with John Oliver.”