The annual Newcastle Comedy Festival is back with a bang, kicking off with its famous Festival Gala evening at Newcastle’s Civic Theatre on Saturday, 29 June.

Thanks to the City of Newcastle, Novocastrians will once more have the opportunity to laugh for almost a whole month with Newcastle Comedy Festival’s biggest and most diverse lineup yet!

The Gala will showcase the best of Australian and New Zealand comedians coming in hot from their showcases in Melbourne and Sydney Comedy Festivals. The Newcastle Gala promises to deliver the best iteration of each performer’s show.

This year's program boasts some of the biggest names in comedy and the gala is already close to selling out. Some highlights include:

Melanie Bracewell

This kiwi has quickly carved out a path in the comedy scene with her impressive list of credits, showing she has a writing skill set well beyond her years.

Nazeem Hussain

This joker has fast become one of the biggest stars of Australian comedy and a much-loved television and radio personality. Nazeem hits the stage touring his new show, Totally Normal, to Novocastrians for the first time.

Luke McGregor

Coming in hot from MCing the Melbourne International Comedy Festival Gala, Luke will be sharing his ONLY festival appearance at our very own Newcastle Comedy Festival.

Cameron James

Returning to his hometown, Cameron is touring his new show, Mixtape – which has been two years in the making and the most anticipated comedy release of the year.

Jenny Tian

In a year, Jenny Tian went from gigging to no audience to becoming TikTok famous with over 25 million likes. Jenny Tian’s set will be dishing out ALL the secrets about life as a content creation – BIG serious secrets.

Luke Heggie

Luke Heggie brings his show, grogan, to Newcastle. Sharing the tribulations of someone just trying to stay alive until he’s dead while attempting to remain a man of the people. He’s recently discovered that a slip of the tongue is now more commonly known as his true colours and that salted caramel was not just a fad.

The Newcastle Comedy Festival program reads like a who’s who of Australian and New Zealand comedy including Luke Heggie, Nick Capper, Rhys Nicholson, Michelle Braiser, Melanie Bracewell, Kirsty Webeck, Andrew Hamilton, and more.

Throughout the almost month-long festival, there will be showcases at Earp Distilling Co, Newcastle Comedy Club, Civic Theatre, Newcastle Conservatorium, and The Gal on Beaumont. For the full festival program, head to the website, check out this year’s lineup and get your tickets booked.

PLUS – the Newcastle Comedy Festival Launch at Earp Distilling Co on Friday, 28th June may already be SOLD OUT, but the team have just released tickets to a Earp Showcase happening on Saturday, 6th July. 

Earp Distilling Co. Showcase | 6 July

Newcastle Comedy Festival is bringing some of the best comedians from around Australia and NZ together for a cracking lineup at Earp Distillery. The showcase will feature a rotation of multiple acts in a relaxed atmosphere where you can expect big belly laughs. 

Making dinner plans? Add a canape and drinks package by Earp Distilling Co. to be enjoyed from 5pm. In addition to entry to the show, this ticket includes two hours of pre-show wandering canapes, and a bottomless beverage package featuring house spirits, wines, and beer. The menu has been designed with enough variety to cater to those with gluten-free, vegan, and vegetarian diets.

Newcastle Comedy Festival

Where: Across Newcastle
When: 28 Jun – 21 Jul
More Info: click here