Pubs are closing, food stores shutting early and the city decorated in England flags.

It’s frankly the biggest night in England for quite some time.

But for one man, the timing could have been slightly better.

Comedy writer and former doctor Adam Kay is due to give the first show of his socially distanced tour in Southampton on Sunday.

So, naturally he was delighted when realising England making the Euro 2020 final clashed with his own performance at The Mayflower.

“I was really absolutely delighted about the result”, he insists.

“And then reasonably gutted that I was going to miss the match. But the show must go on and I will be able to catch the second half”, he reasoned during a chat with the Daily Echo.

There will be two performances of Adam’s hit show in Southampton on Sunday, which has followed the success of his book, This is Going to Hurt.

The hilarious yet heartbreaking compilation of his diaries from when he was a junior doctor, is the premise of the show which has now been seen by more than 200,000 people.

And in preparation for Sunday night, he’s already had a bit of practice for keeping an eye on the score during the tournament.

“I was on stage during the game with Czech Republic and I had my alerts on and phone balanced out of sight”, he admitted.

But don’t worry, it won’t  - and didn't - distract from his performance.

Socially distanced, with audience members in masks, has it been strange returning to the theatre under these circumstances?

“I thought it was going to be very weird, in a half empty theatre, and everyone in masks.

“But it’s an audience of real live people, and it’s wonderful.”

Adam is very aware of the suffering the arts sector and theatre has suffered during the pandemic.

“The impact on the arts has been a particularly depressing aspect of it (the pandemic).

“And it feels like no-one in charge cared about them.”

Returning to the subject of This Is Going to Hurt, he said: “It’s developed a life of its own.

“It’s evolved and obviously since the pandemic, it has changed how we perceive the health service. There are lots of brilliant people doing brilliant things and we have to look for the positives.

“We have an amazing thing in the NHS. If it came under some kind of threat, I truly believe - and hope - the country will get on their feet and fight for it.”

Anyone who follows Adam on Twitter, knows he is outspoken about some of the decisions political leaders are taking regarding the pandemic, the most recent being around ‘Freedom Day’ and the dropping of the mask rule.

“Firstly, I am very glad it is not me who is having to make these decisions.

“(But) I do worry about the timing of opening up while the cases are rising.”

He speaks about the possibility of variants developing which vaccines might not protect against, as well as his concern about long Covid and the unknowns around the full impact it has on people’s long-term health.

Ultimately, he wants anyone coming to his show to enjoy it and take the positives, something he references a lot during our chat. He is determined to take the positives out of everything.

"Hopefully people will think this is a funny show which lifts the lid on the life of a junior doctor and hopefully I know my words by now."