Comedy News

 

  • Ludwig back for a third series

    The BBC has ordered a third series of David Mitchell's comedy drama Ludwig — before the second series has even aired. Mitchell plays a reclusive puzzle setter who goes undercover as his detective twin brother in the show, which became a big hit for BBC One. Production on the new series is expected to get underway later this year…

  • Adam and Joe re-unite for special one-off show

    Adam Buxton and Joe Cornish are reuniting for a special one-off show at the Royal Albert Hall this November to mark thirty years of The Adam and Joe Show. The duo will look back at their cult Channel Four series through clips, memories and behind-the-scenes stories in what promises to be a giant nostalgia-filled watch party.

  • Peter Kay announces final tour dates

    Peter Kay has announced the final dates of his record-breaking Better Late Than Never Tour — and they're all for charity. The Bolton comedian will play Brighton, Cardiff, Hull and Blackpool this autumn, with all profits split between The Lily Foundation, Maggie's cancer care charity and The Be More Laura Foundation.

  • BBC axes Live At The Apollo

    The BBC has axed Live at the Apollo after twenty two years, with budget cuts forcing the end of the much-loved stand-up showcase. Blankety Blank and Celebrity Mastermind are also among the casualties as the corporation looks to save a hundred million pounds a year from its content budget. One final series — the twenty first — is yet to broadcast, and the BBC has promised to announce digital plans focused on stand-up and emerging comedy talent in its place…

  • New Ali G film on its way

    Sacha Baron Cohen has reportedly shot a brand new Ali G film in secret. According to a Hollywood industry newsletter, the project — first mooted during the writers' strike of twenty twenty three — has now wrapped, with Cohen said to have been spotted filming in character around Oxfordshire and also in the United States. No release date or distribution deal has been confirmed yet.

  • Lindsey Santoro heading to Edinburgh Fringe

    Stand-up Lindsey Santoro is heading to this year's Edinburgh Fringe with her new show It Was Like That When I Got Here. The comedian, who cites Lee Evans as an early inspiration, will perform at the Monkey Barrel from the nineteenth to the thirtieth of August. She's been speaking about her love of a good heckle and the pressures of being tipped as one to watch at the Fringe.

  • Daddy Issues Back for this, and final, series

    BBC-Three comedy Daddy Issues is returning for a third and final series. The Stockport-set show,
    starring Aimee Lou Wood and David Morrissey as a young mum and her hapless dad, was BBC Three's
    biggest comedy launch since the start of twenty twenty two, and series two was the channel's top
    scripted title for twenty twenty five. The new six-part series picks up eighteen months on, with Gemma finally finding some stability in life — but not for long.

  • Stage tour for Phantom Raspberry Blower of Old London Town

    A brand new stage tour is coming for one of British comedy's most beloved sketches. The Phantom Raspberry Blower of Old London Town, originally created by Spike Milligan and made famous by The Two Ronnies, is getting its first ever theatrical adaptation to mark the fiftieth anniversary of its original broadcast. The tour runs from September through to November, taking in venues across England and Wales.

  • James Rocquet tour announced

    New Zealand stand-up James Rocquet bringing his worldwide tour to the UK this October. The Filipino-New Zealand comedian will perform his new show Mano Po at venues including Edinburgh's Monkey Barrel, Leeds Hyde Park Book Club, and two nights at The Bill Murray in London — the first of which has already sold out. Further dates take in Southampton, Manchester and Bristol.

  • Matt Lucas to play Fagin in Oliver

    Matt Lucas is stepping into one of British musical theatre's most iconic roles, playing Fagin in Oliver! at the Gielgud Theatre in London. He takes over for a six-week run from the twenty second of September to the first of November, while regular Fagin Simon Lipkin takes a break to become a father for the first time. Lucas most recently wowed audiences as Thénardier in the Les Misérables arena spectacular.

  • Andy Parsons extends tour

    Satirical stand-up Andy Parsons has extended his sell-out tour Please Hash Off To Mars yet again, adding a raft of new dates from September through to December. The new dates take in venues including Cambridge Junction, Scarborough's Stephen Joseph Theatre, Nottingham Arts Theatre and Leicester's Y Theatre, with tickets available now.

  • Christmas special for The Cleaner

    Greg Davies is heading to the Italian Dolomites for a Christmas special of his BBC comedy The Cleaner. The one-off sees his crime scene cleaner character Wicky go on a disastrous hiking holiday, with Robert Webb, Peter Serafinowicz and Kevin Eldon joining the cast. Filming began this week, with the special set to air on BBC One later this year.

  • The next generation of UK female comedy talent

    Women in Comedy on the Rise has revealed its pick of the UK's next generation of female comedy talent. The names were announced at an event hosted by Women in Film and Television UK and Gobby Girl Productions, celebrating female comedy writers, performers and directors shaping the future of British comedy. Among those featured are Soph Galustian from Daddy Issues and Rye Lane, Claire Rafferty from Derry Girls, Laura Evelyn from Doctor Who and Black Mirror, and Anna Morris, who won a Scotsman Fringe First for her debut play Son of a Bitch.

  • Sophie Duker announcing new tour

    Taskmaster champion Sophie Duker has announced a brand new tour called Hot Beef Injection. The show kicks off with a twelve-night run at the Soho Theatre in London from the twenty sixth of October, before heading out across the UK and Ireland in twenty twenty seven, with international dates also planned in New York, Barcelona, Amsterdam and Rotterdam. Tickets go on general sale on the twenty fourth of July.

  • Brand new Liverpool comedy festival this September

    A brand new Liverpool Comedy Festival has been announced for this September. The four-day event, created by the team behind the Hot Water Comedy Club, takes over Blackstock Market from the third to the sixth of September with more than seventy comedy shows across multiple stages. Confirmed names include Ricky Tomlinson, Crissy Rock and Mick Miller, with many more still to be announced.

  • Heritage Live at Sandringham cancelled

    Bad news for comedy fans in Norfolk — the HeritageLive festival on the Sandringham Estate has been cancelled due to poor ticket sales. The five-day event had boasted a stellar comedy line-up including Russell Howard, Josh Widdicombe, Tom Allen and Rory Bremner, alongside music headliners Janet Jackson and Lionel Richie. Organisers said it would have been irresponsible to proceed without certainty they could meet all their costs, and ticket holders should receive automatic refunds…

  • Good news from Leicester

    Good news from Leicester, where a community fundraiser has raised nearly eighteen thousand pounds to save a beloved comedy venue. The Big Difference bar on Leicester High Street was repossessed after the financial collapse of the Leicester Comedy Festival, but manager Big Tony has launched a crowdfunder to reopen it under the new name Forum Porcorum, promising to always pay artists on time…

  • More Peter Kay dates in Bolton

    Peter Kay has added four more hometown shows in Bolton following extraordinary demand. The original four dates at The Albert Halls sold out immediately — available exclusively to residents with a Bolton postcode — and the new January dates will follow the same rules, with all profits going to Bolton Hospice.

  • Channel 4 confirms Taskmaster spin-off

    Channel 4 has confirmed a Taskmaster spin-off called Your Time Starts Now. Devised and hosted by Alex Horne, the new show will see real British households compete against each other tackling his typically devious tasks — without ever leaving their homes. A pilot episode has been commissioned, with the show said to require creativity, lateral thinking, speed and teamwork.

  • Filming begins on new series of Here We go

    Filming has begun on the fourth series of the BAFTA-winning BBC sitcom Here We Go. Created by and starring Tom Basden, the new six-part series sees the full ensemble cast return, including Jim Howick, Katherine Parkinson and Alison Steadman. The new series promises family chaos including a graduation, a birthday party, a surprise snail allergy and an eventful fun run.

  • Seann Walsh extends current tour

    Seann Walsh has extended his current tour, This Is Torture, into twenty twenty seven. Before the autumn leg gets underway, he'll be performing at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe in August at The Stand Comedy Club. New twenty twenty seven dates go on sale today, taking the tour all the way through to April next year

  • Ania Magliano currently on tour with Peach Fuzz

    SNL UK and Taskmaster star Ania Magliano is currently on tour with her new show Peach Fuzz, which has been picking up strong reviews. The hour sees her explore her relationship with her own body with a characteristically light touch, drawing on her late Gen Z sensibility and a childhood preference for Sylvanian Families over Barbie. The tour includes a run at the Edinburgh Fringe.

  • Ed Gambe's Unacceptable commissioned for second series.

    Ed Gamble's new panel show Unacceptable has been commissioned for a second series. The TLC channel has ordered eight more episodes including a Christmas special, starting in November, with Richard Ayoade and Joanne McNally captaining the two teams.

  • Such Brave Girls wins Broadcast Digital Award

    Such-Brave-Girls was named best comedy at the Broadcast Digital Awards. The series, created by and starring Jodie McNee and Lizzie Davidson as two chaotic sisters navigating life and love, beat off strong competition to take the top prize.

  • Dinnerladies Stage Show

    Victoria Wood's beloved sitcom Dinnerladies is being revived as a new stage show. Les Dennis will star as canteen maintenance man Stan in the touring production, the first new work based on Wood's back catalogue to be commissioned by her estate. Written by twin sisters Beth and Emma Kilcoyne, the play opens at the Manchester Opera House in January before touring the UK until August.

  • Joe Lycett applies for pub licence

    Joe Lycett has applied for a licence to run his own pub for one hour a week, as part of a new Channel 4 series called The Lycett Arms. The comedian's east London boozer will open for the duration of each live episode across the six-part run, with Lycett joking about his newfound passion for government paperwork.

  • Geoff Norcott's weekly YouTube show

    Jonathan Pie creator Tom Walker and stand-up Geoff Norcott have teamed up for a brand new topical comedy show on YouTube. Called Well That Went Well, the five-week series sees the pair tackle the week's political and showbiz stories every Friday at ten pm until the thirty first of July.

  • Dan Tiernan announces new tour

    Rising star Dan Tiernan has announced his largest UK tour to date. Following a month-long run at the Edinburgh Fringe this August with his new show Quartz and All, Tiernan will take the hour around the country across twenty four dates from October through to March next year, culminating in his biggest headline show yet at the Clapham Grand in London.

  • Mo Gilligan's fried chicken documentary

    Mo Gilligan has revealed details of his first Netflix documentary, in which he ate fried chicken three times a day for twenty eight days straight. The Super Size Me-style experiment forms part of Big Chicken: A Fast Food Conspiracy, a ninety six minute film in which he traces the history of the dish from South London to the United States, examining fast food chains, large-scale farming, health, the environment and the cultural stereotypes surrounding fried chicken. The documentary lands on Netflix from the fifth of August.

  • Calendar Girls: The Musical wowing audiences

    Calendar Girls: The Musical is currently wowing audiences at the Stephen Joseph Theatre in Scarborough. Tim Firth and Gary Barlow's show takes the much-loved story back to its Yorkshire roots, with critics praising its heartfelt humour, nimbly handled nudity and its warm understanding of community spirit. The production runs at the Scarborough theatre before heading on tour.

 

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