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Celia Pacquola

Australia's Celia Pacquola started comedy in 2006, winning the prize for best first-time entrant in the Raw Comedy open mic competition at that year's Melbourne International Comedy Festival after only a handful of gigs. The following year she performed as part of the festival's Comedy Zone showcase.

In 2008 she traded in her waitressing career to write for Network Ten's Good News Week, write and perform for The Comedy Hour on ABC radio and broadcast her weekly radio show Red Hot Go on Fox FM.

In 2009, she performed her first solo stand up show Am I Strange? At the 2009 Melbourne International Comedy Festival where she won The Age Critics Award for Best Australian Show. The show then transferred to Edinburgh.

Her follow-up Flying Solos, played the 2010 Melbourneand Edinburgh festivals, after which she moved to the UK.

However, she continues her career in her homeland, too, with one of the main parts in ABC's 2011 series, Laid.

Celia Pacquola wins Melbourne's top award

Nathan Chin best newcomer

Celia Pacquola has won the biggest prize in Australian live comedy.

The stand-up won the award for the most outstanding show at the Melbourne International Comedy Festival for Gift Horse, which revolves around her partner giving her an inflatable kayak for her 42nd birthday.

Picking up her award, Pacquola – who is celebrating her 20th year in comedy – joked about how unexpected it was to win for a show based on such a trivial subject, compared to previous shows which tackled weightier topics.

Read a five-star review of her show here.

Also nominated were British comedians Sam Nicoresti, Dan Tiernan and Emmanuel Sonubi (review), plus Mexican-American Lara Ricote (review), Danish-based American Abby Wambaugh and Australians Frankie McNair (review), Reuben Kay, Cassie Workman (review) and Kitty Flanagan.

Nathan Chin (review) won the best newcomer award – a category reserved for Australian and New Zealand acts – over fellow nominees Elliot Wood (review), Dana Mitchell (review), Caitlin Duff (review), Jo Gowda, Tarsh Jago (review) and Barney Pollock (review).

Laura Davis won the Golden Gibbo award – which honours the memory of the late Lynda Gibson, and looks to recognise independent, local, adventurous shows.

Kitty Flanagan won the people’s choice award for the most tickets sold; Lizzie Hoo won the Pinder Prize, which helps bring shows to the Edinburgh Fringe, Kate Dolan and Nath Valvo shared the director’s choice award and Bron Lewis won a new VicScreen award for a show that has TV or film potential.

The Piece of Wood comics’ choice award – an actual chunk of timber going to a comedian for 'doin’ good stuff ‘n’ that' and chosen by all previous winners – was awarded to Nikki Britton.

Last year’s most outstanding award went to Garry Starr for Classic Penguins with Jessica Barton’s Dirty Work earning her the best newcomer prize.

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Published: 18 Apr 2026