A series of special events celebrate iconic film and TV comedy. The Comic Strip Presents … (October 4th, The Glee Club) sees Robin Ince joined by members of the seminal Comic Strip team to discuss the series that that not only launched Channel 4 and also the careers of a generation of British comedians (including Rik Mayall, Ade Edmondson and French and Saunders), while Trigger Happy TV: Live (October 7th, Town Hall) finds creator Dom Jolly revisiting characters and sketches to mark a quarter-century of chaos.

Actors/writers Steve Pemberton and Reece Shearsmith also bring their inventive anthology TV series Inside No.9 to the stage while the festival’s annual Laurel and Hardy film screenings return with an animal themed triple-bill.

As always, local acts feature prominently. Prior to recording his show for prosperity, Gary Delaney is back on home turf for two special warm-up performances of his hugely successful touring show Gary In Punderland and acclaimed Brum musical double-act Good Kids reunite for a very special one-off appearance.

The always popular Birmingham Comedy Festival Free Half-Dayers are also back. Heading to the (almost) neighbouring Cherry Reds and The Victoria for consecutive Sunday afternoons, acts appearing include Eric Rushton (Channel 4 Sean Lock Award), Finlay Christie (over 12 million likes on TikTok) and Jamie D’Souza (The Stand Up Sketch Show) who test out new material. Birmingham Comedy Festival Breaking Talent Award Winner 2023 Hasan Al-Habib also appears with the finished version of his debut show, Death To The West (Midlands). Having performed a work-in-progress version at a previous edition of the festival, this will be the first time Hasan’s completed show is aired in the city.

Other visitors to the Free Half-Dayers include the award-winning Rob Kemp with his inventive Beetlejuice/Beatles mash-up, Beatlesjuice; Andy Robinson and James Cook, recording a new episode of their pop music podcast Shooby Dooby Doo Wop; Tal Davies, who presents a read-through of her work-in-progress sitcom; and improv troupe Behind The Headlines with their improvised Peaky Blinders parody.

The whole shebang officially kicks off with the prestigious Birmingham Comedy Festival Breaking Talent Award 2025 on October 3rd at the Glee Club.

Organisers asked a popular AI platform about this year’s festival, and it replied: “Birmingham Comedy Festival is widely regarded as one of the UK’s top independent comedy festivals, and it’s especially beloved for its mix of big-name acts, rising stars, and local talent.”

Reviewing the AI response, a human spokesperson for the festival stated: “Sounds right. Couldn’t have said it better.”

Winner of five Best Festival awards, Birmingham Comedy Festival is the UK’s second longest-running comedy/arts festival, and was set up in 2001 to celebrate and elevate the city’s often unsung comedy scene. Over 12,000 people attend the independent festival every year.