Voting is now open for the Scottish Comedy Awards 2019.
The Scottish comedy Award panel met earlier this week and had some very heated discussions over the various shortlists, proving that Scottish Comedy is currently in a very healthy state, both in terms of quality of acts, venues and productions, as well as the sheer number of performers, live comedy shows, TV & radio shows and of course purpose built live comedy venues – which with the opening of Glee in Glasgow means Scotland now has 6 major comedy clubs.
Thanks to the likes of Kevin Bridges month long residency and Still Game, Kevin Hart, Bill Bailey etc. performing to massive crowds at The SSE Hydro, Scotland also now has what is the World’s busiest comedy venue. With the Edinburgh Fringe still miles ahead as being the World’s largest gathering of comedians and comedy audiences it is fair to say the Scotland is the funniest country on Earth.
BBC Scotland’s Breaking The News (pictured top) leads the list with nominations in both the Best TV Show and Best Radio show categories, as well as a nomination for host Des Clarke for Best Radio Comedian, and regular guest panellist Elaine Malcolmson and lead writer Neil Bratchpiece both up for Best Writer.
Arabella Weir is nominated for Best Actress in Two Doors Down, which is also nominated for Best TV Show.
Joining her are Bill Patterson for Fleabag, Gavin Mitchell for Still Game, Karen Bartke for Scot Squad and Dave Anderson‘s performance as Chic Murray for Oran Mor’s A Play, A Pie & A Pint – the only theatre performance in the acting category.
The awards are dominated by the live stand up categories.
Susie McCabe, Jay Lafferty and Larry Dean lead the live categories with two nominations each. All 3 are nominated for Best Solo Show, McCabe also for Best Headliner, Lafferty (who’s Breaking the News performance was recently featured on front page of New York Times) for Best Compere, and Dean for Best TV Comedian.
In the TV Comedian category Dean is up against ITV 2 Love Island’s Iain Stirling, Daniel Slossand his multiple appearances on US late night TV, stalwart Frankie Boyle and Live At The Apollo debutant Fern Brady… the first ever Scottish female comedian to perform on the show.
This year the panel decided to add a category for Best Breakthrough Act. This is to reflect the amazing growth of the Scottish circuit and acknowledge that of those progressing within it.
In the past couple of years Christopher MacArthur Boyd has made the leap from young open spot to being one of the most reliable headline comedians on the circuit, has been nominated in the Best Solo show category and has been signed by the UK’s largest comedy agency.
This year former Best Newcomer winner Gary Meikle achieved global fame with his online video about eyebrows. He is now selling out theatres all over the UK and is soon to embark on a major US tour.
Jim Smith is probably better known as Farmer Jim. Regular cameo appearances on Scot Squad, BBC Short Stuff and a BBC Sitcom written about and filmed on his Perthshire farm have cemented his fame in Scotland where he now sells out large provincial theatres in minutes, but it is his Breaking The News spots that have got him global fame online.
Last year Stephen Buchanan became the first Scottish Comedian to win the BBC Comedy Award. The made it a brace by also winning Scottish Comedian of the Year title.
Voting is only open to those who work within the Scottish Comedy Industry either as performers, writers, or production staff.
Voting will close on Monday 3rd June.
The Awards ceremony takes place in Glasgow on the evening of Tuesday 11th June.
