Browse Shows
On Demand Past Purchases Settings
Favourites
0
 Cart
0
 My Tickets
USER
On Demand Past Purchases Settings
Favourites
0
 Cart
0
 My Tickets
Back to Listing

Top tips and best memories from Festival faves

  • 31 October 2024
  • · General

In honour of our 2025 Registrations opening, we got in touch with some Festival faves, to hear all about their best Melbourne Comedy Festival memories, to get some words of wisdom for first-timers, and to get a sneak peak into what to expect for their 2025 shows...

What’s your best Melbourne Comedy Festival memory?

Anytime I get to perform with the Aboriginal Comedy Allstars, and being part of the 2024 Gala will always be a special memory. 

What's your best piece of advice for anyone doing their first Comedy Festival?

Savour every moment on stage and if the opportunity presents itself, please go and thank your audience for coming to your show. 

Give us one word to describe your show...

Colourful!

What’s your best Melbourne Comedy Festival memory?

I mean, there's heaps! The Galas, the dinners afterwards, going into Chinatown to grab a bite of food with Des Bishop from America who speaks Mandarin, and he just orders everything. All of that stuff's amazing.
But my highlight, forever and ever, will be Jessica Kirson and I standing outside Hi-Fi bar, at 2:00 in the morning and making a punter laugh so hard she peed her pants, right there in front of Hi-Fi bar. Actual peepee in the pants.

What's your best piece of advice for anyone doing their first Comedy Festival?

Knuckle down and do the whole thing, because the momentum builds. Like, the first one I ever did, I only did ten days and it was the hardest one that I did. Then after that, I've done the whole month every time. And it does, it builds, and I know it's hard. And you know what? Take deep breaths and don't take it too personally when people don't want to come to your show. It's just a job. It's a great job, but it's just a job. 

Give us one word to describe your show...

Stories!
It's the same as all the other shows that I've ever done. I think I'm like 13 or 14 shows in, and I've got two Afrikaans shows, and the one thing that they all have in common: stories. 

What’s your best Melbourne Comedy Festival memory?

Checking my phone at 4am halfway through a night-shift in the ED to discover I'd been nominated for Best Newcomer and would be needed for a photoshoot in just a few hours!
Such a crazy time of my life -- felt so unbelievably special to be handed the award by two good friends later that week.

What's your best piece of advice for anyone doing their first Comedy Festival?

You're gonna start feeling really weird around week three, and it'll be because you've eaten nothing but pizza for the whole month. Consider eating a vegetable!

Give us one word to describe your show...

Different! 

What’s your best Melbourne Comedy Festival memory?

I was heading into the city on the train and I heard a couple watching an Urzila Carlson clip on their phone and i thought – they must like comedy i'll give them a flyer. So I went up to them and told them I had a show on and here's a flyer. They did what a lot of people do and said "Thanks we'll try and get along." That night they changed their dinner plans to come to my show! They came up to me at the end of the show and said "We're the people from the train." Of course I knew who they were. But it was just the sweetest thing and a reminder that people are nice. 

What's your best piece of advice for anyone doing their first Comedy Festival?

Figure out what your goals are. Is it to be better at comedy? Is it to do 50 minutes of material? Is it to gig interstate? It'll be hard and new but also so rewarding whatever the outcome.  

Registrations are open now!

Ready to register your show from the 2025 Melbourne Comedy Festival? Click here to get started!

Be a part of the Festival!
Share:
Melbourne International Comedy Festival acknowledges the traditional custodians of the lands upon which we work and live. We acknowledge the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples' spirit, imagination and rich history of storytelling and humour that is an inspiration to all Australians.

We accept the invitation to walk together with First Nations people towards a more positive future for Australia, as described in the Uluru Statement From The Heart.