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Sydney Comedy Festival Guide: Must-See Stand-Up 2026

Prepare to laugh out loud at the hilarious lineup of not-to-be-missed stand-up shows heading to Sydney in 2026! 

Whether you love seeing five-star comedic legends or are excited to discover fresh faces, there's something for everyone. With brand new shows from Tommy Little, Geraldine Hickey, Lloyd Langford, and more, you'd be silly to miss the hottest shows in town!

Expect an incredible variety of performances — from sharp observational humor to outrageous antics and everything in between.

Sydney Comedy Festival kicks off 13 April - 17 May.

Don’t miss your chance to be part of the fun —grab your tickets now and experience the comedic talent that’s ready to light up Sydney!

 

Image is of Abby Howells standing in a pink lacy dress. She has blonde short wavy hair and it holding a doll that looks similar to her. She is standing in front of a red curtain.
ABBY HOWELLS
The Cave

The Grand Electric
Wed 22 Apr

Welcome to The Cave.

What is The Cave? Well, you’ll have to come to find out.

Does Abby know what The Cave is? Oh yeah, don’t worry about that

Directed by Carlo Ritchie

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Image is of Alex Ward. Alex has medium length brown hair and is wearing a off-white sweater. She is standing in front of a light brown backdrop and smiling.
ALEX WARD
Literally Anyone

Enmore Theatre
Thu 7 & Fri 8 May

Alex had an awkward weekend in a painfully generic Airbnb, and she’ll probably tell you about it.

Seen on Have You Been Paying Attention?

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Alexei Toliopoulos has short brown curly hair and a moustache. He is wearing a yellow un-buttoned shirt, white t-shirt and a gold necklace. The background is white.
ALEXEI TOLIOPOULOS
VHS

Factory Theatre
Wed 6 - Fri 8 May

Pop the tape into the VCR and join Alexei as he takes you on an adventure in movie watching.

Directed by Zachary Ruane

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Brett Blake is waring a black shirt and jacket. He has a brown beard and a mullet. The background is grey.
BRETT BLAKE
Little Turd

The Comedy Store
Fri 1 May

In 2002 Brett Blake was charged for assaulting a public officer. Is he guilty? You be the judge.

Nominated for best show at the 2025 Melbourne Comedy Festival

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Bronwyn Kuss is wearing a blue button up shirt. She has red curly hair. Her body and face is turning toward the side and she is looking off camera. The background is beige.
BRONWYN KUSS
Bronwyn & Sons

Enmore Theatre
Sat 9 & Sun 10 May

A drunk witch told Bronwyn she should have a baby. She didn’t. But she could have. It’s not that hard. Anyway, this is about what happened instead.

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Claire Hooper has short blonde wavy hair. She is wearing a purple patterned dress and is looking into the camera lens and smiling. Claire is holding a bunch of orange roses and is sitting in front of a red background.
CLAIRE HOOPER
fun show xx

Enmore Theatre
Sat 9 & Sun 10 May

Claire Hooper is gonna discover how to have fun.

Or she’s gonna ruin fun for everyone.

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Dave Hughes has short grey hair and is wearing a green and orange checkered shirt. He is standing in front of a blue backdrop and smiling.
DAVE HUGHES
Cooked

The Concourse Concert Hall / Thu 14 May
The Joan Penrith Concert Hall / Fri 15 May
Factory Theatre / Sat 16 & Sun 17 May

There is no one else that comes close to the phenomenon that is Dave Hughes. Behind that cooked looking facade is a mind that works like no other.

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Dave Thornton has short brown hair and a beard. He is wearing a white under shirt and a navy blue buttoned up top. He is sitting in front of a door. The background has been edited to have a blue filter.
DAVE THORNTON
More or Less

The Concourse Lounge / Fri 1 May
The Comedy Store / Sat 2 & Sun 3 May

A seasoned performer whose shows have been described as ‘devastatingly effective’ (Chortle), Dave is back with a brand-new hour of stand-up

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Image is of Dave Woodhead. He has long curly light coloured hair which has been pulled into a bun. He has an orange beard and is wearing a denim jacket with a blue and gold trim. He is standing in front of a red background and smiling.
DAVE WOODHEAD
Weight and Height

Enmore Theatre
14 - 17 May

Dave Woodhead is a big fella. How big, you ask?

Find all the answers to the big questions when Woodhead makes his grand return to the Sydney Comedy Festival!

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Image is of Dilruk Jayasinha. He is wearing a grey shirt and a black leather jacket. Dilruk has short dark hair and a dark beard. He is smiling into the camera lens.
DILRUK JAYASINHA
Gratitude Guy

Darling Quarter Theatre / Thu 14 & Fri 15 May
The Concourse Lounge / Sat 16 May

Dilruk Jayasinha is the GOAT (gratefullest of all time)!

Dilruk has appeared on Utopia and Celebrity MasterChef Australia and filmed a stand-up special for Amazon Prime.

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Image is Fergus Neal. Fergus has long brown hair and is wearing a dark sweatshirt. He is holding up an iPhone and looking into the screen with a surprised expression on his face. The image has been edited to look like Fergus is a cartoon.
FERGUS NEAL
Boy

Enmore Theatre
14 - 17 May

Fergus brings his sharp wit and warm storytelling to the weird world of boyhood. BOY is a heartfelt hour about finding your way as a man—whatever that means.

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Image is of Jordan Barr who has long wavy blonde hair and is wearing a purple zip up jacket. The background is a purple starry galaxy.
JORDAN BARR
Choir Girl

Enmore Theatre
7 - 10 May

Jordan is unbulliable. This show is about the people who have tried.

Expect embarrassing stories, dark humour, and a weird chick demanding your attention

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Image is of Josh Thomas wearing a green buttoned up shirt. He has blonde hair and blue eyes. He is leaning sideways and smiling into the camera. He is standing in front of an orange background.
JOSH THOMAS
Jiggle Jiggle

The Joan Penrith Concert Hall / Thu 30 Apr
The Concourse Concert Hall / Fri 1 May
Factory Theatre / Sat 2 & Sun 3 May

"This year I just want to have fun. Jiggle, jiggle" – Josh Thomas

Creator and star of international sensations Please Like Me and Everything’s Gonna Be Okay.

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Image is of Lloyd Langford wearing a green button up shirt. He is standing in front of a pink background and has a confused expression on his face.
LLOYD LANGFORD
Okay, I Believe You

The Concourse Lounge / Fri 15 May
The Grand Electric / Sat 16 & Sun 17 May

A brand-new stand-up comedy show from a man that sounds like a YouTube video played at half speed.

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Image is of Michael Hing wearing a grey suit, white shirt and brown reading glasses. He is leaning and looking into the camera. The background is red.
MICHAEL HING
Real Human Man

Darling Quarter Theatre
Sat 2 May

A brand-new hour of jokes and stories from a man who has spent a lot of his life having to convince people he's not a robot.

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Image is of Nath Valvo wearing a white and blue patterned shirt. He has short brown hair and is smiling toward the side of the camera. The background is a grey blue.
NATH VALVO
Home Body

The Grand Electric
Sat 9 May

Nath's been out of the house...the drama of it all! Jokes, gossip and high-kicks at a sensible hour.

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Image is of Nick White wearing a stripy blue and white shirt. He has short brown hair, a beard and blue eyes. He is looking into the camera and smiling without teeth.
NICK WHITE
Nick White's Talent Night

The Grand Electric
Wed 6 & Thu 7 May

Nick White craves validation from audiences. This year he is upping the ante by seeking validation through 6 additional personas that live through him.

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Image is of Nikki Britton. Nikki has long blonde hair and blue eyes. Blue fabric is draped over Nikki and the frame of the image. She is cradling a bit of the fabric and looking into the camera.
NIKKI BRITTON
Not To Be Dramatic...

The Grand Electric
Sun 10 May

Nikki Britton has made being a silly bitch an artform.

Seen on Have You Been Paying Attention, Guy Mont's Spelling Bee and soon, Amazon's Deadloch.

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Image is of Nikki Britton wearing a rainbow aerobics outfit. She is smiling and standing in front of an orange background.
NIKKI BRITTON
Nikki Britton's Not Your Nan's Aerobics

The Grand Electric
Sat 9 May

"Not your Nan's Aerobics" is an hour of hilarious, horny and heart pumping fun! It's a basic, low impact, zero pressure dance aerobics class meets stand up show.

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Image is of Pete Helliar. He is dressed in the Australian soccer jersey and has a deflated soccer ball on his head like a hat. He is wearing faded green and yellow face paint and looks disheveled. The background is green.
PETE HELLIAR
An International Kerfuffle

The Grand Electric
Sun 10 May

In this hilariously true story, Pete Helliar finds himself at the centre of a media firestorm.

Directed by Zoë Coombs Marr

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Image is of Rove McManus wearing a blue suit and white shirt. The camera is above Rove and he is reaching up his right hand toward the lens.
ROVE MCMANUS
Tonight's Guest: Rove McManus (tales from the talk show trenches)

The Grand Electric
Fri 8 May

Rove McManus has had over 25 years of talk show hosting under his belt. That's a lot of talking - so why stop now?

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Image is of Sam Taunton. Sam has short brown hair and is earring a navy blue rain jacket. He is looking up to the top left and smiling. The background is light brown.
SAM TAUNTON
This Must Be The Place

Darling Quarter Theatre
Fri 24 Apr

Join Sam for this 60 minute story, filled with a lifetime of suburban misadventures and nostalgia.

“Serendipitous comedy gold.” The Age

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Image is of The Fairbairns. Jaxon is wearing a black tshirt and Lachlan is wearing a white tshirt. Both have blonde wavy hair. The background is grey.
THE FAIRBAIRNS
Fair Dinkum

Factory Theatre
Sat 2 & Sun 3 May

The Fairbairns are bringing an hour of sketch comedy live to the stage for the very first time.

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Image is of Tilly Oddy-Black. Tilly is wearing a white t-shirt and has long blonde hair. She is looking up and smiling.
TILLY ODDY-BLACK
Tilly Does A Show

The Grand Electric
Thu 23 Apr

Tilly Oddy-Black brings her online world to the stage for the first time.

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Image is of Tom Ballard standing in a field. He is holding a mic stand in one hand and dangling a microphone in the other. He is wearing black jeans, a pink button shirt and a navy blue jacket.
TOM BALLARD
Be Funny Challenge (Impossible)

The Grand Electric
Fri 1 May

Australia’s Special Envoy For Comedy Tom Ballard returns in 2026 with a new show packed with jokes

As seen on Fisk, Deadloch, Tonightly, Guy Mont Spelling Bee.

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Image is of Tommy Little. Tommy is lying on a mustard coloured corduroy pillow and has an incense coming out of his ear. There is smoke surrounding the image. He is smiling.
TOMMY LITTLE
Namaste The Fuck Away From Me

The Joan Penrith Concert Hall / Thu 30 Apr
The Concourse Concert Hall / Fri 1 May
Enmore Theatre / Sat 2 May

After a decade of being fuelled by whiskey and adrenaline Tommy decided it was time to treat his body to some wellness.

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Image is of Wil Gibb. He is wearing a red and orange crocheted top and is posing toward the camera. Wil has red hair and the background is orange.
WILL GIBB
Condfidence is Key

The Grand Electric
Fri 24 & Sat 25 Apr

Comedian Will Gibb takes the audience through his battle with having TOO MUCH condfidence and the situations he's ended up in because of it.

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