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Bristol Comedy & Stand-Up Events

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Bristol's Comedy Scene

Bristol is an essential stop-off in the UK comedy circuit. The Comedy Box is probably the city’s most prolific stand up promoter, regular shows bring crowds to The Hen and Chicken, The Tobacco Factory and Colston Hall’s ‘The Lantern’. In summer The Comedy Garden in Queens Square brings a who’s who in British comedy with past guests including Stewart Lee, Marcus Brigstocke, Mark Watson and Shappi Khorsandi. The Loco Club (beneath Temple Meads train station) is home to occasional stand up nights promoted by Bristol Underground Comedy. In the city centre alongside the headliners found at Colston Hall and Bristol Hippodrome, Riproar Comedy host stand-up every Friday and Saturday evening.

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Our recent comedy recommendations

A whip-smart, soul-stirring International Women’s Day cabaret! Riot Act showcases a riveting array of female voices shaking up comedy and spoken word, with award-winning TV stand-up and ‘Guilty Feminist’ co-host Jessica Fostekew, trailblazing Poetic Pilgrimage founder Muneera Pilgrim, Bristol’s own “granny rapstar” Deasy Bamford + more. RIOT ACT- Bristol's searingly new Cabaret Experience- proudly presents the very best in comedy, poetry, music and everything inbetween from the south west and beyond

Boundary-obliterating contemporary theatre in the heavenly Mount Without: ‘Paradise Lost…’ is a one-man dance through the dawn of existence in a divinely comic, wildly inventive reimagining of Milton’s epic poem. Cosmic scale and precise pathos in masterful balance. Lost Dog bring their iconic, critically acclaimed staging of Milton’s epic poem Paradise Lost to Bristol to celebrate the opening of our new theatre.

New cabaret kids on the scene Riot Act come bearing a stacked selection of socially conscious comedy and spoken word. Highlights include anarcho-comedian and veteran campaigner Mark Thomas, writer and academic Edson Burton, poet-activist Lawrence Hoo – plus a dynamic DJ set from Laid Blak’s BJ Bunjy & Joe Peng to keep things moving after the words have landed. RIOT ACT is Bristol's searingly new open mic cabaret clubnight, proudly presenting the very best in Comedy, Poetry, Music and everything in between from the South West and beyond. Join us for an unforgettable night of mischief, togetherness and joy powered affordably for the people, by the people.

Something is rotten in the state of San Andreas! This is definitely the most charmingly batshit conceit for a documentary we’ve seen in a while: struggling through lockdown, two out-of-work theatre actors chronicle their attempts to mount a full Shakespeare production on the virtual streets of Grand Theft Auto. Thrilling, absurd, and surprisingly poignant. Encore screening

What our editors say

“He hits and swerves at extreme stereotypes of cultural and social class. The masks of men as a form of personal defense against the self and the world we live in today. The consequences of boredom on the psyche are ripped open through physical labor on stage. Teetering on the fine lines between comedy and tragedy. To find the importance of self-belief. No matter where you are from, what class you are placed. There are essential needs of love ingrained in all of us. Removing the masks of ego and cultural affectations we hope to find a common ground of truth and hope.”
From: Hope Hunt and the Ascension into Lazarus

“Taking inspiration from music videos, advertising and comedy sketch shows, ELEFANTIN looks at female image and expectation, heteronormative and male gaze, female empowerment and aggressive sexuality in pop culture and asks the iconic 1959 Barbie, now 66, how she is and what she really wants for herself.”
From: ELEFANTIN

“What emerges is an unexpected romantic comedy haunted by centuries of gay ghosts. Deep House moves through the couple’s various domiciles while unlocking doors to a lineage of outsiders who came before them: hapless criminals, sexpot bartenders, friars, pirates, government workers who subvert the system and activists who go all the way to the Supreme Court to fight for their freedoms. Combining cultural history with radically intimate memoir, Deep House is at once a romp through the queer archives and the innermost tale of two boyfriends who made a home in the shadows of a turbulent civil rights battle.”
From: Jeremy Atherton Lin: Deep House

“Tales From The Wasteland is an improvised post-apocalyptic adventure comedy. This twisted and talented cast of wastelanders will take a single suggestion from you and craft an entire narrative show with no pre-prepared characters, story or dialogue.”
From: Tales From The Wasteland: Post-Apocalyptic Improv

“Got a question about our venue or your tickets? Never been to a comedy show before? We’ve got a handy guide for you in The Gaffe FAQ: www.thegaffecomedyclub.com/faqs" target="_blank" >https://www.thegaffecomedyclub.com/faqs”
From: Chris Hall & Amy Webber: Work in Progress