At a time when the “special relationship” between the UK and the US is on a knife edge, one man is doing his bit to extend the hand of friendship across the Atlantic. Comedian Joe Lycett has brought together 19 places called Birmingham in both countries to make a formal alliance – which, he claims, could stand in for Nato if necessary!

Coming to our defence would be the United States of Birmingham, the name of Lycett’s new Sky TV series.

The places, ranging from Birmingham, New Jersey (population 32), to one of the largest cities in Alabama, have all signed a friendship agreement, including the pledge to provide an alternative to Nato if the need arises. Which might happen sooner than they think, given Donald Trump’s stance on the security pact.

At a jubilant RTS Midlands premiere to launch the series, Lycett said: “At the time, that line was just a joke, but with recent events we might have to invoke it. Imagine… me and Alison Hammond going up against Russia!”

Joe Lycett’s United States of Birmingham is a love letter to his home city. The heartwarming series celebrates Birmingham at a time when it has been in the news for all the wrong reasons, with headlines telling of mountains of rubbish resulting from a bin strike.

Sky commissioning editor Barbara Lee introduced the RTS screening of the first of four episodes: “This was the easiest commission I’ve ever done; it took just one meeting.

“It was so irresistible. Joe talks about Birmingham with such deep affection that it’s contagious. The show is a joy, full of laughs and love. He met the most extraordinary people. We are living in divisive times, but this shows that people are just wonderful.”

The premiere was a brilliantly Brummie event, from the presence of Lord Mayor Ken Wood, UB40’s Robin Campbell and Mr Egg (the personification of an infamous greasy spoon in the city), to the cushions on the stage emblazoned with the faces of Birmingham-born This Morning presenters Alison Hammond and Cat Deeley.

Lycett took those cushions with him in a bus he drove 2,000 miles across North America, visiting all the Birminghams; although he didn’t get as far as the one in Canada or the crater on the Moon called Birmingham. On his journey, he dispensed gifts of city products, including Cadbury’s chocolate, Barbara Cartland novels, Bird’s custard, Typhoo tea and HP sauce.

The series is made by Birmingham production company North One, with whom Lycett also makes Travel Man for Channel 4. The director and producer is Nicola Silk, who lives around the corner from Lycett in the suburb of Kings Heath.

Though “most of the Brummies in the media aren’t here any more”, Lycett said he loves to promote his birthplace and home whenever he can, including making his Bafta-winning Channel 4 entertainment show Late Night Lycett in the city. “There’s something magical about this city which nobody talks about. We don’t shout about ourselves.”

Silk revealed how she had the initial idea for the series: “I can’t be the only one who has accidentally almost booked a table for two in Birmingham, Alabama. I’ve always been interested in that city and thought there might be something in a programme comparing us and them. I took it to Steve Gowans from North One, who realised there were all these other Birminghams.”

She then sought Lycett’s involvement and he came up with the “genius twist” of a pact between the towns and cities. He explained: “I wanted a formal linking of them all and I love the pomp of an official document. You know when you see signs in cities naming the others they are twinned with? I wanted the sign ‘Birmingham, friends with Birmingham, Birmingham, Birmingham’ and so on. That’s funny to me.”

Lycett got a local official in each Birmingham to sign the friendship agreement, backed by the Lord Mayor of Birmingham in the UK. His mission culminated back home with an ­International Day of Birmingham on 24 September last year, the first of what is hoped will be an annual event. A parade and civic reception included local luminaries Joan Armatrading and Black Sabbath’s Tony Iommi.

The crowd enjoyed a collective chant of “Alright, bab”, a common friendly greeting, before the hoisting of the United States of Birmingham (USB) flag, designed by Lycett, with buglers playing the USB fanfare. The RTS screening began with the sold-out audience standing for the jaunty music performed by ceremonial bugler Antonio Socci, who composed the anthem.

Lycett says he finds guns terrifying, so was disconcerted in the first ­episode to find himself a natural while firing at a range. In Birmingham, Pennsylvania, he met some of the descendants of William Brinton, a Quaker who emigrated from Birmingham UK to the US in the 17th century and whose relatives include Taylor Swift as well as Richard Nixon.

His encounters with locals are funny but Lycett does not ridicule them. As event host Nikki Bedi said: “You did it with such respect, when it would have been easy to cock a snook.”

Lycett replied: “There’s no need to be sneery. It’s a celebration and I was genuinely excited to meet these people. At first, many of the Birminghams were suspicious of us and thought it might be a Sacha Baron Cohen-style hoax. But then we were really touched by the way they welcomed us.”

He explained that they deliberately avoided discussing politics with the Americans because it would have felt too dated by the time of transmission. “We never asked anyone who they voted for. Most of them almost certainly voted for Trump but they were all lovely.”

Along the way, Lycett found interesting connections between the Birminghams. At the RTS event, the normally flamboyant comedian wore a plain white T-shirt, emblazoned with the words Birmingham Tap Water. He explained: “What I didn’t expect was to find a weird link that so many of the Birminghams are proud of their tap water in the same way that we are.”

Lycett picked out his favourite and least favourite US places called Birmingham. He told the RTS: “I was surprised to find that Birmingham, Michigan, is posh. It’s a cross between LA and Dubai – really swish, with sports cars everywhere. All the other Birminghams were quite rough round the edges, like ours. Michigan was probably our least favourite because it was soulless.

“Our favourite was a suburb of Toledo in Ohio, full of Hungarians. There’s a hot dog restaurant that served Bloody Mary cocktails with a sausage in it instead of celery. Weirdly, there’s a Mondelez plant there that makes biscuits for the Cadbury’s ­chocolate produced in Birmingham.”

Lycett concluded: “I am so, so proud of this series. Apart from one day, when Nicola had me pouring molten metal at an actual furnace on a really hot day in August, it was genuinely a joy to make. I am thrilled with it.”

Report by Roz Laws. The RTS Midlands premiere was held at the Midlands Arts Centre in Birmingham on 1 April. It was hosted by Nikki Bedi and produced by Jayne Rae.