London’s First LGBTQ+ Stand-Up Comedy Festival to showcase best in queer talent.
May sees the launch of London’s first-ever LGBTQ+ Stand-up Comedy Festival, conceived by Comedy Bloomers, home of the LGBTQ+ New Comedian of the Year competition. The festival runs from May 17th to June 11th and features both established and up-and-coming talent at a selection of venues throughout the city and promises to deliver a much-needed injection of queer humour into our lives.
Launching with a fundraiser for Rainbow Migration, a charity which supports LGBTQI+ people through the asylum and immigration system, the festival will provide a dynamic platform for the different voices that make up the LGBTQ+ community. The first event takes place in conjunction with Clandestina Queer Comedy, queer women, trans and non-binary-led comedy show at London’s Seven Dials Club. Other venues include 21 Soho, 2Northdown and much loved LGBTQ+ venue, The Two Brewers in Clapham.
Acts confirmed for the festival launch include Jess Fostekew, Sarah Keyworth, Victoria Olsina and Jen Ives. Other names include Rhys Nicholson (Judge Ru Paul’s Drag Down Under, Netflix Live at Athenaeum), Stephen Bailey, Ella Vaday (Drag Race UK), James Barr (A Gay & A Non-Gay podcast) and Hannah Byczkowski (Winner, BBC Traitors Season 1) have been confirmed for other dates throughout the festival. Shows will be hosted by some of the best-known LGBTQ+ MCs in the UK, including Kuan Wen, Charlie George and Russell Arathoon.
Chris Smith of Comedy Bloomers explained: “The success of the LGBTQ+ New Comedian of the Year, which we launched in 2019, has demonstrated the considerable appetite that exists for LGBTQ+ stand-up comedy. When we began investigating how we could showcase even more queer comedy, we realised there was a great opportunity to create a dedicated LGBTQ+ stand-up comedy festival in London.
“Giving a platform to the LGBTQ+ community, and especially trans comedians, at a time when the narrative is so polarising is a powerful way to elevate and empower them. Humour transcends our differences, breaking down boundaries and uniting us all in laughter. We hope comedy fans both within the community and beyond will join us in this celebration of incredible talent, checking their preconceived ideas, together with their coats, at the door.”
With recent shows from comedians such as Ricky Gervais and Dave Chappelle coming under fire for targeting minority groups and the subject of cancel culture being high on the agenda, the LGBTQ+ Stand-up Comedy Festival promises to let the comedy do the talking.
Smith continued: “Queer comedy has evolved into a flourishing, dynamic, sophisticated genre of humour that not only pokes fun at lazy stereotypes, found both inside and outside of the community, but also provides a refreshing insight into the various subcultures found within the LGBTQ+ world.
“Comedy Bloomers is dedicated to giving marginalised comedians a platform and to nurturing LGBTQ+ talent that might otherwise remain undiscovered. We want to showcase the incredible talent that exists so that rather than being booked as a token addition to the bill, diverse performers are recognised based on their merit and booked as a regular addition to the line-up.”
Tickets to London’s first LGBTQ+ Stand-Up Comedy Festival, 17 May – 11 June are available here
Festival schedule
17.05.23 – Clandestina Queer Comedy at the Seven Dials Club, WC2
21.05.23 – Heleana and Sophia Blackwell: Wife Material, Work in Progress at 2 Northdown, N1
21.05.23 – Tom Mayhew: This Time Next Year, We’ll be Millionaires, Work in Progress at 2 Northdown, N1
24.05.23 – Ella Vaday’s Elluva Comedy Night: A Night of Queer Comedy at Comedy 21Soho, W1
31.05.23 – Liz Guterbock: Work in Progress at 2 Northdown, N1
01.06.23 – Dee Allum & Friends at Queer Comedy Club, N19
02.06.23 – All Bar Huns at The Two Brewers, SW4
04.06.23 – Sally Ann Fellows: Work in Progress at 2 Northdown, N1
09.06.23 – Dick Denham: Big Dick energy, Work in Progress at 2 Northdown, N1
11.06.23 – Comedy Bloomers Festival Finale at Seven Dials Club, WC2
About Comedy Bloomers
Comedy Bloomers was founded in 2017 by comedian Chris Smith. The brand is dedicated to giving marginalised comedians a platform and to nurturing LGBTQ+ talent that might otherwise remain undiscovered. As part of this remit, Comedy Bloomers comprises a dedicated comedy night for LGBTQ+ talent, the New LGBTQ+ Comedian of the Year Competition and London’s LGBTQ+ Stand-up Comedy Festival.
