Stand-up Stephen K Amos is coming to South London after completing a tour that took him round the world.

The comic, who grew up in Balham and Tooting, has had a hectic first half of 2012, sharing his time between a five-month tour of Australia and New Zealand, a stint in North America, compiling a memoir of amusing anecdotes and playing the Edinburgh Festival.

If that was not enough, after completing his October tour Laughter is My Agenda, Amos is off again, putting together a Radio 4 show, working on a BBC sitcom and readying himself for another trip down under.

He says: “I like to keep things fresh. You have to prepare a set, but if something happens during the show you run with it. It keeps you on your toes and shows the audience you are enjoying what you are doing. If you are just reeling off the same lines and looking for the pay cheque you know your time is up.”

One downside for Amos fans is his busy schedule has seen him mostly absent from TV screens in recent times.

He says: “With the touring you can’t commit to TV. I have been keen not to become one of those comedians who you see everywhere or you’ll find people saying I heard you tell that joke on this show or do that line here.

“The thing with these tours is it is taking me to new markets. Stand-up and live comedy has exploded, everyone is on TV, is putting out a DVD – I wanted to look at something different.”

A regular performer at Fairfield Halls, Amos is looking forward to performing in front of what he sees as a home crowd.

He says: “I grew up in Balham, Tooting, then Wimbledon, so I see Croydon as like home. It’s a great place to play and I’ve always had a good reception.”

With a routine that is littered with anecdotes of his travels, encounters with family and friends, and observations on current affairs, Amos has a wealth of material to draw upon for his book, I Used to Say My Mother Was Shirley Bassey, out later this month.

He says: “A publicist approached me about an autobiography, but I thought ‘Who wants to read about my life, what about a memoir?’ It follows periods of my life, but it jumps around and is more about retelling stories than a full account of who I am.”

Stephen K Amos: Laughter Is My Agenda; Fairfield Halls, Park Lane, Croydon; October 5, 8pm; £18.50, call 020 8688 9291, or visit www.fairfield.co.uk.