Booming Scottish comedy scene set for biggest ever celebration in Glasgow as festival celebrates 21st birthday

Zara Gladman, Mark Nelson, Elaine C Smith, Frankie Boyle, Craig Hill and Susie McCabe to appear

Scotland’s biggest comedy showcase will be coming of age when it returns this year – in the midst of what appears to be a golden age for performers and audiences.

Two years after was almost brought back from the dead after two editions fell victim to the pandemic, the Glasgow International Comedy Festival has unveiled its biggest ever programme.

It will showcase a comedy landscape that appears to be booming, thanks to new stars who have rapidly built audiences via the country’s rejuvenated stand-up scene, TV shows, social media channels and podcasts.

Comedy fans can choose from more than 500 events in the two and a half week long event, which will be staged across more than 45 venues, ranging from the 02 Academy and the King’s Theatre to clubs and bars like Blackfriars, The Griffin, The Stand, McChuills and the Lincoln Inn.

The festival programme will see rising stars like Zara Gladman, Mark Nelson, Connor Burns, Marc Jennings, Marjolein Robertson and Jay Lafferty appear alongside long-time favourites like Craig Hill, Susie McCabe, Frankie Boyle and Elaine C Smith.

The event, which will be marking its 21st anniversary when it returns from 13-31 March, was originally set up by Tommy Sheppard, the co-founder of the Stand Comedy Clubs in Edinburgh and Glasgow.

The Scottish Comedy Agency, which had staged the event, announced it would be ending in the autumn of 2021, only for the festival to be revived under a new team led by director Krista MacDonald.

Elaine C Smith, Mark Nelson and Zara Gladman launched the programme for the Glasgow International Comedy Festival at the King's Theatre. Picture: John Devlin

She said: "Glasgow really recognises humour as a significant part of its cutural identity. I’d like to think the festival is the event that allows people to shout about it.

"I think we’re at a real pinnacle point of Scottish comedy at the moment. The level of success people are having, both artistically and at the box office, is wild.

"It also feels like there is much more of a community feel in the scene in Scotland.”

Nelson will be appearing in his first headline show at the King’s Theatre as part of this year’s event.

Elaine C Smith will appearing at this year's Glasgow International Comedy Festival. Picture: John Devlin

He said: “It’s a huge festival if you're a Scottish comedian now.

"The Glasgow audiences are so supportive, which allows comedians to play bigger venues than you would normally think about doing.

"It is also a great opportunity for newer comedians to do an hour long show for the first time. It’s a huge step up from doing 20 minutes in clubs. The festival gives comics the chance to do it in a friendly city in a friendly atmosphere.

“It’s a really health period for Scottish comedy at the moment. Social media and online stuff has really helped comedians find an audience without having to wait for TV to accept them.

Zara Gladman will be among the acts appearing at this year's Glasgow International Comedy Festival. Picture: John Devlin

“They can quite happily get their sketches and stand-up to hundreds of thousands of people – and do it all themselves.”

Writer and performer Gladman, who has built a huge social media following with characters like “West End Mum” Aileen, will be making her festival debut with two shows at the Oran Mor which have already sold out.

She said: “There are people coming up now through online comedy who have maybe never been to a comedy club before, they might have a disability, they might have care responsibilities and cannot work at night, and they might be a single mum.

“The great thing about online comedy is that you don’t actually need to leave the house to do it – it's made comedy a lot more accessible, not just for performers, but also for people who consume comedy.

"I’ve been going to the festival as a punter for years. It feels like a much bigger deal than it has ever been and Scottish comedy feels stronger than it’s ever been.

“For someone doing their first show, I have felt super welcome, supported and encouraged.

Elaine C Smith, Mark Nelson and Zara Gladman launched this year's Glasgow International Comedy Festival at the King's Theatre..

“I’m conscious that it’s a very different skillset doing live comedy in front of actual humans, compared to doing it behind a screen. I have some live experience, but I’ve never done any of my characters on stage before.

"I'm taking a bit of a gamble and a risk, but I’m hopeful that I’ll have nice audiences and it will work. I’m doing lots of preparation for it.”

Smith, star of the hit TV comedies Rab C Nesbitt and Two Doors Down, will be appearing at the King’s in a new stand-up show reflecting on her decades in the industry.

She said: “I’ve always said that Glasgow is a city where a sense of humour is a necessity. I think it’s in our genetics that you have to have a sense of humour. Everybody is cheeky and has got something to say.

“It does seem a bit nonsensical that Glasgow has only had a comedy festival for 21 years.

"But I do feel that it now has such a reach that the city and the people who live here feel as if it belongs to them. Having an event that is really accessible like this one is really important at a time like this given the cost of living crisis.

"I had no real desire to do any more stand-up. I felt as if I had nothing to say. I love doing the panto and I love Two Doors Doing. It was actually my daughter who suggested I get back out there.

“I turned 65 last year, which made me look back and realise what a climb it has been. It’s been a hard slog. The world we live in now is so dark and misogynistic and dark at times. I just thought to myself: ‘I’m not away yet. Maybe I’ve got something to say.’ It’s also about saying to young women: ‘Come on, you can do this.’ I’d like to see it’s easier for women to get into the business now, but I think it’s still pretty tough.”