Overview
Brisbanites, if you're ready to laugh this autumn, the River City has just the festival for it. Now taking place in late April and all throughout May each year, Brisbane Comedy Festival is the Sunshine State capital's excuse to get giggling. On the 2023 lineup: 350-plus gigs by more than 110 comedians across five weeks.
BCF revealed a heap of its bill for this year late in 2022, but that was just the beginning of its roster of chuckle-inducing talent. Now, the full program has just dropped, complete with over 70 more comedians joining the fun from Friday, April 28 till Sunday, May 29, 2023.
Across both announcements, the Brisbane Powerhouse-hosted event isn't short on big names, including returning favourites and first-timers alike. David O'Doherty, Danny Bhoy, Micky Bartlett, Ed Byrne, Ed Gamble, Sara Pascoe, Chris Parker and Ivan Aristeguieta sit on the bill alongside Ross Noble, Jason Manford, Jason Leong, Daniel Kitson and Alfie Brown.
Fans of homegrown comedy talent can also look forward to Tripod, Nat's What I Reckon, Rhys Nicholson, Akmal, Mel Buttle, The Umbilical Brothers, Wil Anderson, Dave Hughes, Peter Helliar, Rove McManus, Anne Edmonds and Lloyd Langford, as well as Tom Ballard, Tommy Little, Michael Hing, Andrew Hansen, Dilruk Jayasinha, Claire Hooper and Geraldine Hickey. And these days, we basically count Irish comedian Jimeoin as a local, don't we?
Other highlights include Karen From Finance, Reuben Kaye, Lizzy Hoo, the cabaret-style Dirty Fame Flash Candles Club, the Aboriginal Comedy Allstars, the Multicultural Comedy Gala and Queerstories. Or, there's the return of Two-Man Tarantino, the Sunday Roast and Shit-Faced Shakespeare — the latter doing Romeo and Juliet.
BCF attendees can check out comedy cabaret Brisbaret, magic circus stunt show Flabbergasters!, free after-work Friday knockoff sessions and Agatha Christie-inspired improvised whodunnit Murder Village as well, plus James Schloeffel from The Shovel and Charles Firth from The Chaser teaming up for Wankernomics.
2023's Brisbane Comedy Festival comes after the event has enjoyed impressive growth over the past five years, its audience increasing by 25 percent since 2019, and also attracting more than 20,000 BCF first-timers.
This year, those crowds will be heading to Brisbane Powerhouse, of course — including six stages in its main Powerhouse Theatre, Underground Theatre, The Studio, Rooftop Terrace, Park Mezzanine and Graffiti Room, and its new Pleasuredome deployed as an outdoor comedy club — and to Fortitude Music Hall for the opening gala, plus The Tivoli as a satellite festival hub.
The 2023 Brisbane Comedy Festival will take place between Friday, April 28–Sunday, May 29. For further details and tickets, head to the festival's website.
Top image: Atmosphere Photography.