A new ‘pay what you want’ comedy night is launching in Liverpool

A new ‘pay what you want’ comedy night is launching at a gin distillery and bar in Liverpool.

Laugh Hard Comedy Club already hosts successful regular nights at RockSalt in Crosby, now comedian Andy Roach who created it is bringing a new version to Murphy’s in the Ten Streets area, just outside the city centre.

He’s not only introducing a different pricing option, he wants this particular Laugh Hard to be an opportunity for young stand-up talent to try out their material in front of a live audience.

That way, like the Edinburgh Fringe, audiences will hopefully be able to see some fantastic emerging names at the start of their careers before they make it big on the circuit.

“I want it to be somewhere students or anyone less experienced who’s trying to break through can try their hand and make this one of their earlier gigs,” he explains. “There’s something similar in Manchester that runs really nicely so I thought we should do it here. It’s not an open mic, but I’m open to giving people an opportunity.

“I’ll always book a more experienced act to close the night, and I’ll put together a line-up that I think’s going to be good and work together. There might be some nights where we do get more well-known comedians coming down and trying 10 minutes, but it’s also a chance to see someone new before they really go on.

“We did one at the Plaza Cinema which sold out, and we had Scott Bennett who’d been on Live at the Apollo. He did brilliantly but we also had Anna Thomas who’d won the BBC Young Comedian of the Year and three other acts and after the show it was really great to hear so many people liking different acts. 

“It’s not always who you expect, and I want these new nights to have the same type of vibe.”

Andy, who’s just been shortlisted to perform in the Grand Final of Southport New Comedian of the Year as part of the Southport Comedy Festival, will host when Laugh hard Comedy Club launches on Thursdays at Murphy’s in mid-October.

He found the venue by chance, he explains, when he was out and about promoting RockSalt dates.

“I went to Waterloo Festival a couple of months ago and there were stands there promoting local businesses. I got chatting to a guy called Mark from Murphy’s and I asked him to put a few flyers at the end of his table. 

“He asked me a bit more about it and said they were interested in doing a comedy night.

“We discussed a few ideas and I suggested the ticket model where people can either book a guaranteed seat for £2 or come free, then contribute at the end if they want. If people enjoy the show and they can afford to pay a fiver or whatever at the end, that’s great and I’ll share it with the acts.”

Shows will all be a mix of new comedians and more established, starting off with Molly McGuinness from Salford, who was a BBC New Comedy finalist and Joe Lycett tour support, performing on Thursday October 16. 

To book tickets in advance go to the website here. Any up-and-coming comedians who fancy appearing can contact Andy via social media @laugh_hard_comedyclub