Liz Guterbock on how vulnerable artists can combat exploitation

Live comedy is in a perilous state. Comedians risk debt to pursue their craft, yet venues, promoters, and social media platforms frequently fail to pay, with no consequences. Freelancers, by definition, are vulnerable—and comedians are freelancers. The comedy industry is powered by artists who often lack even the most basic protections.

I may be mistaken here, but it seems rare that an act starting out in comedy would know about things like Public Liability Insurance and freelancer’s rights regarding late payment unless their day job or other life experience put them in the know. ‘I got into comedy because I couldn’t wait to get my very own Public Liability Insurance,’ is a sentence no one said, ever.

Late or non-payment on the circuit is more common than it should be. Too often, comedians are only paid after calling out promoters publicly on social media. Why is it that companies suddenly find the funds to pay performers after their practices are made public? If a company is genuinely struggling, transparency is crucial—but it’s hard to believe in bankruptcy when payment magically appears only after public pressure.

Continuing to run shows while ignoring invoices is not only unethical—it demonstrates a broader disregard for the artists keeping venues alive. Working-class comedians are hit hardest by these practices; for many, even one missed payment can derail their ability to continue in the industry.

Having an agent isn’t a guaranteed safeguard, either. A good agent fights your corner, and if they’re big enough, they can get their legal team on a promoter who isn’t paying (though there’s not much they can do if that promoter is bankrupt and still running gigs despite that fact). A bad agent, however, can leave you worse off—making poor deals, accepting delayed payments, or even failing to act on your behalf at all. Where else, besides social media, can an act turn when these things happen?

Comedian Alexandra Haddow says: ‘I feel like the only way to get the message across to people who are dodgy about paying is to threaten to go public or send a late charge, and there needs to be a less stressful way for performers. 

‘Also, some people don't have the confidence to chase people or threaten to out non-payers, so it's still not a fair system. There needs to be a comedy specific union or some sort of central body that can call people out, rather than relying on individual acts to stick their neck out and say it. 

‘People are afraid of doing that in case they get labelled hard to work with, but there should be zero shame in chasing or calling out people who don't pay us for our work."

Organisations like Equity UK and the Live Comedy Association (LCA) offer comedians some support. Equity offers comedians Public Liability Insurance, legal advice, and pension options, and the LCA offers a network connecting venues, promoters, festivals and comics. They recently went to the House of Commons to advocate for live comedy to be taken more seriously as an art form. However, both these resources are severely underutilised by comics. Without mass involvement by comedians, the effectiveness of these organisations remains limited.

We need a unified, organised network as opposed to the current system we rely on, which is, at best, a whisper network. I recognise that collective bargaining and the power of unions has lessened in the UK because of certain Prime Ministers in the 80s and the modern gig economy (pun intended). As opposed to the US, we can’t go on strike or protest in the same way. However, we have more power in numbers, and we need comedians to get organised.

We also need mechanisms to protect intellectual property. Comedians are throwing their ideas and sketches out onto social media for free. Who, then, owns that material? The comedian? Or the platform on which it was published? What happens when someone steals your entire show concept? What legal recourse do we have? Currently, not much—unless we act collectively and push for stronger protections.

Comedian Kate Cheka, who was recently in Parliament speaking about the current state of live comedy says: ‘Not only is the state of live comedy precarious, but there is now almost a necessary requirement to publish your art on social media where it is viewed widely with little or no financial gain for the artists themselves. Instead, the profit is pocketed by huge tech monopolies like Google, in the case of YouTube, or Meta, in the case of Instagram and Facebook.’

Together, we need to address intellectual property protections for creatives against tech monopolies and AI.

However, for something actionable comedians can do to protect themselves right now, perhaps it’s best to start small. For instance, including the right clause on your gig invoice can remind the recipient of freelance law. You don’t need to add anything to your invoice to be covered by the Late Payment of Commercial Debts (Interest) Act 1998, but a reminder can prompt faster action. A typical clause might read:

The Late Payment of Commercial Debts (Interest) Act 1998 applies to this invoice. If payment is not made within 14 days, interest will be charged at a rate of 8% above the Bank of England base rate from the date payment fell due until the date it is made.

For full transparency, I got into comedy because I couldn’t wait to put The Late Payment of Commercial Debts Act 1998 clause on my invoices.

If we want to build a sustainable future for live comedy, we need up-and-coming acts to know who to trust, how to protect their rights, and where to go to for support.

Without collective action, there’s no incentive for bad promoters to change. Keep in mind there are good venues, promoters and programmers out there who do pay on time, respect comedians and have a community focus – places like Angel Comedy, Jericho Comedy and programmer Aimee Perry who works with Manchester’s Women in Comedy Festival. We need to use their positive examples to standardise best practices.

Julia Cameron, American teacher and author of The Artist’s Way said: 'The business of art is the machine, but the artist is the live, animating spark that runs it.'

We need to remind ourselves that artists have long been the ones creating culture, only to then see their work exploited – whether it’s by corporations, platforms, or now, AI models. The live comedy sector shouldn’t be allowed to follow the same pattern. Real change will only come if we organise and stand together.

• Liz Guterbock: Nice will be on at the PBH Free Fringe venue Southsider during the Edinburgh Fringe from August 2 to 24 (not 11 or 18) at 7pm. Details here. 

Published: 28 May 2025