Southport Comedy Festival celebrates huge successes with its biggest event yet

The 2023 Southport Comedy Festival was the biggest event yet, with over 5,000 visitors laughing out loud with some of the best comedians in the country.

The fast-growing festival, organised by Big Comedy in association with Halliwell Jones BMW, took place at Victoria Park in Southport over 17 nights from 29th September to 15th October with stars including Seann Walsh, Simon Brodkin, Jason Byrne, Jen Brister, Rich Hall, Jimeoin, Paul Sinha and more. Seven events were completely sold out with others close to full capacity.

Mark Steel was due to perform at the event but sadly had to postpone his tour following his throat cancer diagnosis. Organisers have sent him their best wishes and hope to see him back on stage in Southport soon.

Thousands of pounds were raised for local charities the Community Link Foundation and the Southport Flower Show through special comedy bingo and disco bingo events.

A platform was provided to some of the most talented up-and-coming new comedians in the UK through the Southport New Comedian of the Year competition, sponsored by Dragon Soop, which received over 100 entries. It was won by The Halls of Ridiculous, a brilliant comedy / improv duo.

Southport Comedy Festival directors Brendan Riley and Val Brady said:

“We had more people coming to see shows at Southport Comedy Festival than ever before, even with the cancellation of Mark Steel’s gig. This was our 12th Southport Comedy Festival and it was the best yet. It has been the biggest event we have ever had in terms of audience numbers and we are absolutely delighted.

“Over 5,000 people came to watch the shows from all over the country, which hopefully gave a good boost to local hotels, guest houses, restaurants, bars, shops and other local businesses. We sold out a total of seven shows this year and were very nearly sold out on some of the others as well. We had some fantastic acts this year! We always try to host acts who people always want to see, with festival favourites such as Jason Byrne, Paul Sinha and Rich Hall, while also bringing in exciting new faces such as Jen Brister, Simon Brodkin, Seann Walsh, Tom Davis and others, who have never played the festival before.

“We would like to thank Halliwell Jones BMW and all of our fantastic sponsors for supporting us once again this year and helping to bring the smiles to Southport. We are very grateful to Mark Dilley of Elite Marquees and Bars and to Alan Adams and his team from Southport Flower Show and Victoria Park Events for staging the event.

“We would also like to thank our amazing festival volunteers and of course all of you who came to watch the shows over 17 nights. As well as hosting some of the biggest names on the comedy circuit, we also did our bit to support our local community through sell-out fundraising events.

“Our Comedy Bingo night for the Community Link Foundation charity raised over £2,200, while our 80s Disco Bingo night for the Southport Flower Show charity raised over £1,600.

“We also once again hosted our Southport New Comedian of the Year competition, giving a platform to some of the most talented new comedians in the country and the stars of tomorrow. As organisers, Big Comedy UK never stops!”