Charlie Pickering's The Weekly called out for John Oliver likeness

Comedian Charlie Pickering has been labelled a copycat by some critics who think he drew a little too much inspiration from US host John Oliver for his new ABC TV show.

Pickering's satirical offering The Weekly aired for the first time last night, with some 700,000 viewers tuning in to catch up on the former Network Ten host's take on the issues of the week, including internet piracy and vaccinations.

However, many claimed a case of déjà vu, taking to Twitter to call out Pickering for trying to emulate HBO comedian, Oliver, who presents Last Week Tonight.

"So #TheWeekly is Charlie Pickering impersonating John Oliver but with a light Aussie accent Undecided (sic) on it being a good/bad thing," @KevinAirs442 tweeted.

@AnthColangelo posted "Charlie Pickering's The Weekly is a slight (actual) copy of John Oliver??"

"John Oliver rang, he wants his show back," added @NicHalley.

Despite the criticism online, the show still came in at number 11 in OzTAM's overnight ratings.