Nominees in the Leicester Comedy Festival 2022 annual awards have been announced. Acts and events nominated include No More Jockeys, Sarah Callaghan, Myra Dubois, Jon Pearson, Loremen, Ania Magliano, Marcel Lucont, Good Kids, Garrett Millerick and Troy Hawke.

The awards, now in their 16th year, will recognise contributions to this year’s Festival across a host of categories including awards for Best Show, Best New Show, Student of the Year, Best Promoter, Best Community Project, and Contribution to Leicester Comedy Festival 2022. The winner’s will be announced at a private, invite only ceremony taking place on Monday 28th March in Leicester.

This year’s festival signalled a return to live comedy with audiences travelling from all over the country for a packed programme of 592 events and almost 800 individual performances across 62 venues. For those who couldn’t attend in person, 35 shows were streamed live with NextUp Comedy, totalling 5,150 plays and over 180,000 minutes of comedy watched online. The online audience included people enjoying the festival from their homes in USA, France, Canada, Australia, Brasil, Denmark & China.

Festival exclusive events included The UK Pun Championships, No More Jockeys Live (with Alex Horne, Tim Key & Mark Watson), live interviews with Rosie Jones, Rachel Parris and Pam Ayres, Leicester Mercury Comedian of the Year Competition, Silver Stand Up and the Beyond A Joke seminar programme. Other festival shows included appearances from Tez Ilyas, Ivo Graham, Maisie Adam, Anoushka Rava, Kwame Asante and Joe Thomas.

This year’s Festival saw performers take the opportunity to try out new material with over 23% of events work in progress shows, including those by Ria Lina, Tim Key, Suzi Ruffel, Seann Walsh and Olga Koch.

Geoff Rowe, Founding Director of Leicester Comedy Festival, said “After a really difficult few years, the fact that so many comedians are developing new shows, and trying them out for the very first time at the festival, helps show that the future is looking positive for British comedy. Thank you to everyone who continues to work with us to produce the festival and we look forward to seeing you all again next year when we celebrate the 30th anniversary of Leicester Comedy Festival. But first, can we have a little rest and hopefully some sleep?”

The 30th Leicester Comedy Festival & The UK Kids’ Comedy Festival 2023 will take place from 8-26 February.

A Lifetime Achievement Award will also be presented at the ceremony, along with awards for the best venues and a Legend of Comedy title which recognises outstanding achievement to British Comedy. Previous winners include the late Barry Cryer and Victoria Wood, Lenny Henry, Johnny Vegas and Jo Brand.

The full list of nominees are:

Best Show
Troy Hawke: Sigmund Troy’d
Garrett Millerick: Just Trying To Help
Russell Hicks: The Age of Hicks
Sarah Callaghan: Revolting
Weirdos Comedy Presents: The Envelopes
Sikisa: Twerk in Progress

Best New Show
Ania Magliano: Absolutely No Worries If Not
Good Kids
Sasha Ellen
Christian Brighty: Playboy

Best Kids Show
Marcel Lucont: Les Enfants Terribles
Seska: Frootytooty
The Discount Comedy Checkout

Best Online Event
Spit or Swallow Podcast: Live!
Marvel versus Marvel: The Live Podcast
No More Jockeys
Loremen: Live

Best Impro/Music Show
Jon Pearson: What You Been Up To
Consignia present: Zen & M’s
CSI: Crime Scene Improvisation
Myra Dubois
Alex Leam: The Joy of the Deck
Missimp: It’s A Trap! The Improvised Star Wars Show

Contribution to Leicester Comedy Festival 2022
Fox Books
NextUp Comedy
All Puns Blazing contributors
BID Leicester

Tracey Miller Community Award
Vista
Menphys
Leicester City in the Community

Best Promoter
Just the Tonic
TripleCeePee
Jokes on Us
Kirsty Munro & Masai Graham/Bradders
Laughter Loft
The Doorstep Comedy Club

Liberty Award (for a person or group who have helped to make the festival particularly festive)
NextUp Comedy
Kirsty Munro & Masai Graham/Bradders
Fox Books

Business of the Year
The Gresham Aparthotel
Esquires Coffee Leicester
The Miller Partnership
PPL PRS Ltd
The Belmont Hotel

Student of the Year
Ella Cohen – Falmouth University
Calum Travers – De Montfort University
Robyn Templeman – De Montfort University
Millie Mantell – De Montfort University
Isaac Munslow – De Montfort University
Hannah Clark – De Montfort University

Other awards presented on the night:
Legend of Comedy
Lifetime Contribution to Leicester Comedy Festival
Best venue awards (large, small & new venues)