BBC New Comedy Awards 2023

Original version

BBC Three

BBC New Comedy Awards

Comedy: Standup

A nationwide search to find the best new stand-up talent in the UK.

Who will follow in the footsteps of some of stand-up's biggest names? Fresh new talent aim to impress famous faces in a nationwide search for the next breakout comedy star.

2023

BBC Three HD

Kiri Pritchard-McLean

Josh Pugh

Sikisa

Mike Bubbins

Geraldine Dowd

Lucy Ansbro

Lindsay Jex

BBC New Comedy Awards: 2023: Episode 6

Episode 6

BBC Three - BBC New Comedy Awards, 2023, Episode 6

The competition heads to the Pontio Theatre in Bangor for the final heat.

This year's last five stand-up hopefuls battle it out in Bangor for a place in Glasgow's grand final.

The search for Britain's hottest new comedian has brought us to Bangor, the oldest city in Wales and one of the smallest cities in the UK. Our venue is Pontio Theatre, an ultra-cool arts and innovation centre right in the middle of Bangor University’s main arts building, which, for one night only, has been transformed into our very own comedy club.

Our host for the evening is north Wales’s own Kiri Pritchard McLean.  The multi-award-winning stand-up comedian, writer and satirist kicks off the night with a bit of local banter before bringing on the five acts.

Judging their performances are former New Comedy Awards alumni, comedian, writer and producer Sikisa, and flying the flag for Wales is Barry Island’s finest, comedian and actor Mike Bubbins. Head judge Josh Pugh completes the trio.

It’s not going to be easy to pick a winner from Ben Pollard, Sam Williams, Alex Gibbon, Leah Davis and Frankie Monroe, aka Joe Kent-Walters, whose sets are jam packed with jokes and cutting-edge material - but only one can go through to the Grand Final in Glasgow’s prestigious King's Theatre.

This is the final of six heats taking place across the UK – Bethnal Green, Nottingham, Sunderland, Leith and Ballymena have all played host to this year's comedy showdowns.

The BBC New Comedy Awards is unearthing a rich and broad range of brand-new comedy stars of the future from all corners of the country.

BBC New Comedy Awards: 2023

A multi-platform service for 16-34s, featuring comedy, entertainment and factual content.

The BBC’s multi-platform service for 16 to 34s, innovating with breakthrough comedy, stand-out entertainment, brave documentary and intellectual factual content.

The ultimate hunt for the best new comic of the UK. Thirty hopefuls battle it out across six heats to earn a place in the Grand Final, where one will be crowned the BBC New Comedian of 2023.

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2023

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