Stronghold to host festival shows next year

The Comedy In The Castle festivals have added a third venue to its roster next year, Lancaster.

News that the medieval stronghold joins similar events in Warwick and Powderham in Exeter was announced as the line-ups for all the events were confirmed, with comedians including Chris McCausland, Al Murray, Russell Kane, Joanne McNally and Paul Smith.

The event has drawn more than 20,000 comedy fans to the shows since  2023.

Harry Jenkins, Comedy at the Castle director, said: ‘We are totally overjoyed to finally release our biggest and best line-up yet. Adding Lancaster Castle has been almost 18 months in the making, and 2026 feels like the right moment to grow our offering.

Tickets go on general sale at 10am on Friday November 28. Here are the line-ups:

Warwick

Friday May 22: Freddy Quinne, Joanne McNally, Fin Taylor, Josh Jones and Rachel Fairburn.
Saturday May 23: Freddy Quinne, Russell Kane, Ed Byrne, Thomas Green, Esther Manito
Sunday May 24: Freddy Quinne, Chris McCausland, Mike Rice, Hatty Preston and Scott Bennett.

Lancaster 

Friday June 19: Freddy Quinne, Joanne McNally, Hayley Ellis, Stephen Bailey and Seann Walsh.
Saturday June 20: Freddy Quinne, Russell Kane, Paul Sinha, Lindsey Santoro and Mike Rice
Sunday June 21: Freddy Quinne, Paul Smith, Larry Dean, Brennan Reece and Nina Gilligan.

Powderham Castle, Exeter

Friday July 17: Freddy Quinne, Hal Cruttenden, Joanne McNally, Janine Harouni and Daniel Foxx.
Saturday July 18: Freddy Quinne, Paull Smith, Gbemi Oladipo, Angela Barnes and Stephen Bailey.
Sunday July 19: Freddy Quinne, Al Murray, Thomas Green, Scott Bennett and Hayley Ellis.

Published: 17 Nov 2025