The Komedia New Comedy Awards, in association with the award-winning Comic Boom comedy club and Arts Journalist Victoria Nangle, is open for entries for 2025, championing rising original comedic voices for its fourth year. Online entry launches on 16th September 2024, with the semi-finals and final taking place in January and February 2025.
Previous winners and finalists include Michael Akadiri, Jack Skipper, Sam Williams, Christian Jegard, Elaine Felllows, Matthew Ali, Shalaka Kurup, Daman Bamrah, and 2024 winner Andrew Fox – who continues to rise on the national comedy circuit, as well as working with Komedia Productions within the Brighton community.
MCs and judges for the competition include award winning television comedians and leading respected figures from the comedy industry, such worldwide promoter and comedy agent Mick Perrin, Beyond The Joke’s Bruce Dessau, award-winning comedy writer Tasha Dhanraj, Chortle’s Steve Bennett and BBC Comedy’s Lulu Baker.
Jill Edwards of Comic Boom comedy club said, “We’re passionate about discovering fresh comedy voices. Our aim is to raise the profiles of exciting new stand-up comics. This competition is always a journey of discovery.”
“My goodness, I’m so incredibly delighted to see so many of our KNCA alumni prospering with critically acclaimed solo shows, television and radio credits, and getting the recognition they truly deserve,” says Victoria Nangle.
“We’re thrilled to welcome a new crop of emerging comedians to the Komedia New Comedy Award 2025. Being a highlight in our comedy calendar we are looking forward to embracing the energy of new talent and can’t wait for the show to begin!” says Komedia co-founder Marina Kobler.
Marina Kobler (Komedia), Jill Edwards (Comic Boom) and Victoria Nangle (arts journalist) came together in 2020 to create this award and have been delighted to see it grow and attract new comedic talent each year. The aim of the Komedia New Comedy Award continues to be to discover and support exciting new comics, and to offer opportunities for development.
The Komedia New Comedy Award 2025 winner will get a bespoke award, a spot at Chortle award-winning Comic Boom comedy club at Komedia, and a bottle of fizz.
The award is open to comedians who have been gigging regularly for less than three years and have not won any major comedy competitions. They must have seven minutes of their own stand-up material, plus a clip they can send in with their application.
Thirty two semi-finalists will be selected from clips and will be invited to perform across four semi-final heats. Further details for eligibility and how to enter will be available on the Komedia website.
The semi-finals will take place on four consecutive Tuesdays beginning 14th January 2025. Two comics from each one will be selected by the judges to go through to the final, which will be MC’d by Barry Ferns.
For more information and to enter (entry form live 16th September) please visit here.
To buy tickets for the semi-finals and grand final, click here.
Pictured: 2024 winner Andrew Fox. Picture by James Ennis Photography
