The best of the week's live comedy

The best of the week's live comedy, picked from the 6,824    events Chortle currently has listed. Use our search panel to check our full listings by date and region.    

Sunday November 2

LONDON: Garry Starr mixes puns and nudity in his award-winning Classic Penguins, offering his personal take on literary treasures from Frankenstein to The Grapes of Wrath. It takes up a short West End residency at the Arts Theatre today and tomorrow, plus the next two Sundays.

EDINBURGH: Mike Rice addresses his inner wickedness in Cruel Little Man, a mix of stories about his chaotic life, powerhouse physical performance and great jokes. The tour kicks off at Monkey Barrel tonight. Mike Rice tour dates.

NOTTINGHAM: The city’s comedy festival continues til Sunday. Tonight’s highlights include Glenn Moore, Harriet Dyer, Tom Houghton, Phil Nichol and more. Website

LIVERPOOL: It’s the Hot Water Comedian Of The Year final – and before you ask, no, of course there are no women in it. Vying for the title are Cameron Jones, Qasim Ahktar, Jordan Ducharme, Alex Tighe, Alfie Carter and Louis Etienne.

HALIFAX: The town’s comedy festival ends with a new act final too, although there are some moderately established names in the line-up at the Victorian Theatre bar: Alex Mitchell, Stephen Catling, El Purnell, Graeme Rayner, Dominique, Tim Biglowe, Fil Milton and Maxine Wade.

Monday November 3

LONDON: Soho Theatre Walthamstow hosts the very nearly sold out Rosie Jones Foundation Comedy Gala featuring Flo and Joan, Ivo Graham, Jen Brister, Katherine Ryan, Kerry Godliman, Nish Kumar and the woman herself.

CAMBRIDGE: Catchphrases ahoy! An Evening With The Fast Show returns following dates last year, with Charlie Higson, Paul Whitehouse, Mark Williams, Arabella Weir, John Thomson and Simon Day doling out the 1990s nostalgia, with a mix of reminiscences and sketches. Fast Show tour dates

MANCHESTER: The best contestants from the Frog & Bucket’s weekly gong show of the past few weeks battle it out for the Beat The Frog World Series title, with the gong element removed. Read about this year’s finalists here

Wednesday November 5

LEEDS: South African-New Zealand comedian Urzila Carlson kicks off her 2025 UK tour, You Don't Say, at the City Varieties The former contestant on Taskmaster NZ says the show was ‘born out of sarcasm and storytelling from the mind of a woman who might be slightly out of her mind’. Urzila Carlson tour dates

LONDON: Sarah Cameron-West rages against angst, office politics and the ultimate betrayal by her boyfriend in her one-woman show Karen, which is being adapted for a possible TV show in collaboration with Ghosts star Martha Howe-Douglas. There’s a one-off chance to see it again at Underbelly Boulevard tonight.­

Thursday November 6

LONDON: Capital Xtra opens the doors to its annual comedy club benefit gig, again at Underbelly Boulevard, with a line-up that includes  Eshaan Akbar, Gbemi Oladipo, Jack Skipper, Prince Abdi, Andrew Mensah and Blank Peng.

LONDON: There’s a fine line-up at the Comedy Store across this weekend with John Moloney, Justin Moorhouse, Laura Smyth, Jack Hester and Thanyia Moore.

Friday November 7

LONDON: Stand-up returns to the Theatre Royal Stratford East with an unbeatable line-up comprising  Ed Gamble, Jessica Fostekew, Sarah Keyworth,  Hasan Al-Habib and Tadiwa Mahlunge.

Published: 2 Nov 2025