The Midlands Comedy Awards are an annual awards ceremony for live comedy performers and comedy clubs based in

The Midlands The Midlands is the central region of England, to the south of Northern England, to the north of southern England, to the east of Wales, and to the west of the North Sea. The Midlands comprises the ceremonial counties of Derbyshire, Herefords ...

region of

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

. It also recognises achievement in online comedy. They were founded in 2014 and give out awards in eleven categories every year.

History

The Midlands Comedy Awards were created by Birmingham-based comedian

Jay Shareef Jay Shareef (born 1982) is a British stand-up comedian, broadcaster, podcaster and social commentator, also known by the stage name Jay Islaam. Shareef has written for ''The Guardian'', ''Huffington Post'', ''Birmingham Mail'', ''Chortle'', '' ...

in 2014, "to recognise the huge number of hard working and talented people in heregional comedy community".

Rules and eligibility

The finalists for the awards are chosen by comedy clubs and media professionals from the Midlands region, and only comedians and comedy clubs based in either the

East Midlands The East Midlands is one of nine official regions of England. It comprises the eastern half of the area traditionally known as the Midlands. It consists of Derbyshire, Leicestershire, Lincolnshire (except for North Lincolnshire and North East ...

or West Midlands qualify. This means that comedians resident in The Midlands are eligible even if they are originally from elsewhere. The awards include the following

counties A county () is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposesL. Brookes (ed.) '' Chambers Dictionary''. Edinburgh: Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, 2005. in some nations. The term is derived from the Old French denoti ...

in their definition of the Midlands region:

Cambridgeshire Cambridgeshire (abbreviated Cambs.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the East of England and East Anglia. It is bordered by Lincolnshire to the north, Norfolk to the north-east, Suffolk to the east, Essex and Hertfor ...

Derbyshire Derbyshire ( ) is a ceremonial county in the East Midlands of England. It borders Greater Manchester, West Yorkshire, and South Yorkshire to the north, Nottinghamshire to the east, Leicestershire to the south-east, Staffordshire to the south a ...

Herefordshire Herefordshire ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the West Midlands (region), West Midlands of England, bordered by Shropshire to the north, Worcestershire to the east, Gloucestershire to the south-east, and the Welsh ...

Leicestershire Leicestershire ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the East Midlands of England. It is bordered by Derbyshire, Nottinghamshire and Lincolnshire to the north, Rutland to the east, Northamptonshire to the south-east, Warw ...

Lincolnshire Lincolnshire (), abbreviated ''Lincs'', is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the East Midlands and Yorkshire and the Humber regions of England. It is bordered by the East Riding of Yorkshire across the Humber estuary to th ...

Nottinghamshire Nottinghamshire (; abbreviated ''Notts.'') is a ceremonial county in the East Midlands of England. The county is bordered by South Yorkshire to the north-west, Lincolnshire to the east, Leicestershire to the south, and Derbyshire to the west. Th ...

Northamptonshire Northamptonshire ( ; abbreviated Northants.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the East Midlands of England. It is bordered by Leicestershire, Rutland and Lincolnshire to the north, Cambridgeshire to the east, Bedfordshi ...

Rutland Rutland is a ceremonial county in the East Midlands of England. It borders Leicestershire to the north and west, Lincolnshire to the north-east, and Northamptonshire to the south-west. Oakham is the largest town and county town. Rutland has a ...

Shropshire Shropshire (; abbreviated SalopAlso used officially as the name of the county from 1974–1980. The demonym for inhabitants of the county "Salopian" derives from this name.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the West M ...

Staffordshire Staffordshire (; postal abbreviation ''Staffs''.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the West Midlands (region), West Midlands of England. It borders Cheshire to the north-west, Derbyshire and Leicestershire to the east, ...

Warwickshire Warwickshire (; abbreviated Warks) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the West Midlands (region), West Midlands of England. It is bordered by Staffordshire and Leicestershire to the north, Northamptonshire to the east, Ox ...

, West Midlands and

Worcestershire Worcestershire ( , ; written abbreviation: Worcs) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the West Midlands (region), West Midlands of England. It is bordered by Shropshire, Staffordshire, and the West Midlands (county), West ...

. Before

Brexit Brexit (, a portmanteau of "Britain" and "Exit") was the Withdrawal from the European Union, withdrawal of the United Kingdom (UK) from the European Union (EU). Brexit officially took place at 23:00 GMT on 31 January 2020 (00:00 1 February ...

, the awards accepted the definition of

and West Midlands as the areas represented in the

European Parliament The European Parliament (EP) is one of the two legislative bodies of the European Union and one of its seven institutions. Together with the Council of the European Union (known as the Council and informally as the Council of Ministers), it ...

by those constituencies.

Winners

2021

; Best Act *Winner – Scott Bennett *Runner up – Stevie Gray *Third place – Josh Pugh Best MC *Winner – Jon Pearson *Runner up – Barry Dodds *Third place – Tommy Tomski Breakthrough Act *Winner – Tal Davies *Runner up – Eric Rushton *Third place – Kevin Daniel Best New Act *Winner – Ricky Balshaw *Runner up – Josh Reynolds *Third place – Leanne Easthope Alternative Act *Winner – Good Kids *Runner up – The Boys From The All Night Chemist *Third place – Richard Dadd Best Live Show *Winner – Scott Bennett - Relax *Runner up – Jon Pearson - What Have You Been Up To? *Third place – Richard Dadd - Tea With The Devil Online Comedy *Winner – Jack Kirwan *Runner up – Scott Bennett *Third place – Mary Flanigan Best Comedy Club *Winner – Hollywood Comedy Club *Runner up –

The Glee Club The Glee Club is a chain of independent live stand-up comedy and live music venues in the UK. The first Glee Club was opened by Mark Tughan in Birmingham's Chinese Quarter in 1994,

*Third place – Funhouse Comedy Best Small Club *Winner – NCF *Runner up – The Holly Bush *Third place – RockCentral Best Open Mic Show *Winner – The Holly Bush *Runner up – Canal House ( NCF) *Third place – Kamikaze Club Outstanding Contribution *Geoff Rowe (

Leicester Comedy Festival The Leicester Comedy Festival is an annual comedy festival held in a number of venues across Leicester, England early in the year. History In the early 1990s, De Montfort University arts administration student, Geoff Rowe proposed a project to h ...

)

2020

The awards did not take place due to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

2019

; Best Act *Winner – Scott Bennett *Runner up – Josh Pugh Best MC *Winners (joint) – Chris Oxenbury and Tommy Tomski *Third Place (joint) – Barry Dodds and James Cook Rising Star *Winner – Douglas Carter *Runner up –

Celya AB Celya AB (born 8 September 1995) is a French stand-up comedian, writer and actress based in England. She won the Best Newcomer Chortle Award in 2022. Biography Celya AB was born and brought up in Paris in a French-Algerian family. Her family ...

Best New Act *Winner – Lovell Smith *Runner up – Tal Davies Alternative Act *Winners (joint) – Good Kids and Donald Mackerel *Third Place – Roger Swift Best Live Show *Winner – Josh Pugh *Runners up (joint) – Parapod Live and Thomas Green Online Comedy *Winner – Jack Kirwan *Runner up – Katy Trev Best Comedy Club *Winner –

The Glee Club The Glee Club is a chain of independent live stand-up comedy and live music venues in the UK. The first Glee Club was opened by Mark Tughan in Birmingham's Chinese Quarter in 1994,

*Runner up – NCF Best Small Club *Winner – Ofton Funny *Runners up (joint) – Cherrybomb Comedy, The Kamikaze Club and The Holly Bush Best Open Mic Show *Winner – Useful Idiot *Runner up – NCF £1 Night

2018

; Best Act *Winner – Scott Bennett *Runner up – Josh Pugh Best MC *Winner – Barry Dodds *Runner up – Jason Neale Best New Act *Winner – Douglas Carter *Runner up – Donald Mackerel Best Live Show *Winner – Scott Bennett: Leap Year *Runner up – Laura Monmoth: LGBTQZX Best Comedy Club *Winner –

The Glee Club The Glee Club is a chain of independent live stand-up comedy and live music venues in the UK. The first Glee Club was opened by Mark Tughan in Birmingham's Chinese Quarter in 1994,

*Runner up – Funhouse Comedy Best Small Club *Winner – NCF *Runner up – The Holly Bush

2017

; Best Act *Winner –

Joe Lycett Joe Harry Lycett (born 1988), also known by the self-given moniker "Mummy", and officially self-renamed briefly as Hugo Boss in 2020, is a British comedian, television presenter, and painter. He has appeared on many TV shows, including '' Live ...

*Runner up – Luisa Omielan *Third place – Rob Kemp Best MC *Winner – Barry Dodds *Runner up – Gareth Berliner *Third place – Stevie Gray Breakthrough Act *Winner – Rob Kemp *Runner up – Pete Teckman *Third place – Jack Kirwan and Sarah Johnson (joint) Best New Act *Winner – Jem Braithwaite *Runner up – Gina Overton *Third place – Count Evil Best Alternative Act *Winner – Rob Kemp *Runner up – Jack Kirwan *Third place – Andrew McBurney Best Live Show *Winner – Rob Kemp *Runner up – Josh Pugh *Third place – Phil Pagett Online Comedy *Winner – Jack Kirwan *Runner up – Masai Graham *Third place – Craig Deeley Best Comedy Club *Winner –

The Glee Club The Glee Club is a chain of independent live stand-up comedy and live music venues in the UK. The first Glee Club was opened by Mark Tughan in Birmingham's Chinese Quarter in 1994,

*Runner up – Funhouse Comedy *Third place – Laff Attack Best Small Club *Winner – Funhouse Comedy *Runner up – FAF Comedy *Third place – CAN Comedy and Blue Giraffe (joint) Best Open Mic Show *Winner – The Holly Bush (Cradley Heath) *Runner up – Comedy and Cocktails (Leicester) *Third place – NCF £1 Comedy Night (Nottingham) Outstanding Contribution *Winner – Spiky Mike (Funhouse Comedy)

2016

; Best Act *Winner – Duncan Oakley *Runner up – Masai Graham *Third place – Scott Bennett Best MC *Winner – Barry Dodds *Runner up – Gareth Berliner *Third place – Jon Pearson and Wayne Beese (joint) Best Live Show *Winner – Late Night with Boabby Roaster *Runner up – I Came, I Saw, I Complained *Third place – Hell To Play Breakthrough Act *Winner – Masai Graham *Runner up – Alex Hylton *Third place – Josh Pugh Best New Act *Winner – Moses Ali Khan *Runner up – Sarah Johnson *Third place – Harvey Hawkins Alternative Act *Winner – Paul Palmer *Runner up – Andrew McBurney *Third place – Daniel Nicholas Online Comedy *Winner –

The Parapod ''The ParaPod'' is a comedy podcast hosted by comedians Ian Boldsworth and Barry Dodds. Its subject matter is the paranormal, with skepticism represented by Boldsworth and gullibility, belief represented by Dodds. The podcast ran for three seri ...

*Runner up – Jack Kirwan *Third place – Masai Graham Best Comedy Club *Winner – Funhouse Comedy *Runner up –

The Glee Club The Glee Club is a chain of independent live stand-up comedy and live music venues in the UK. The first Glee Club was opened by Mark Tughan in Birmingham's Chinese Quarter in 1994,

*Third place – Fitz of Laughter Best Small Club *Winner – FAF Comedy *Runner up – Blue Giraffe Comedy *Third place – Fitz of Laughter Best Open Mic Show *Winner – NCF Canal House *Runner up – The Holly Bush *Third place – Roadhouse Comedy Outstanding Contribution *Winner – Bushfest

2015

; Best Act *Winner –

Tom Binns Christopher Thomas Binns (born 1970) is a British comedian best known for his character of Hospital Radio DJ Ivan Brackenbury. Career He appears in the BBC MI5 drama '' Spooks'' (Episode 6 Series 6), Series 3 of the '' IT Crowd'' on Channel 4 ...

*Runner up – Barbara Nice *Third place – Andy White Best MC *Winner – Barry Dodds *Runner up – Andy Robinson *Third place – Jason Neale Best Live Show *Winner – Scott Bennett *Runner up – Masai Graham *Third place – Jon Pearson Breakthrough Act *Winner – Lucy Thompson *Runner up – Masai Graham *Third place – Patrick Draper Best New Act *Winner – Josh Pugh *Runner up – Stu Woodings *Third place – Thomas Rackham Alternative Act *Winner – Roger Swift *Runner up – Johnny Sorrow *Third place – Daniel Nicholas Online Comedy *Winner – Masai Graham *Runner up – Club Smashing *Third place – Mike O'Callaghan Best Comedy Club *Winner – Voodoo Stands Up ( Stamford) *Runner up – CAN Comedy (

Black Country The Black Country is an area of England's West Midlands. It is mainly urban, covering most of the Dudley and Sandwell metropolitan boroughs, with the Metropolitan Borough of Walsall and the City of Wolverhampton. The road between Wolverhampto ...

) Best Small Club *Winner – Funhouse Comedy *Runner up – FAF Comedy Best Open Mic Show *Winner – The Holly Bush (

Cradley Heath Cradley Heath is a town in the Metropolitan Borough of Sandwell, West Midlands (county), West Midlands, England. It is in the Black Country, west of Birmingham. The town was known for the manufacture of chains in the first half of the twentiet ...

) *Runner up – Roadhouse Comedy (

Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands (county), West Midlands, within the wider West Midlands (region), West Midlands region, in England. It is the Lis ...

) *Third place – NCF Canal House (

Nottingham Nottingham ( , East Midlands English, locally ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area in Nottinghamshire, East Midlands, England. It is located south-east of Sheffield and nor ...

) Outstanding Contribution *Winner – Suzanne Rowland

2014

; Best Act *Winner – Andy Robinson *Runner up – Masai Graham Best Compere *Winner – Andy Robinson *Runner up – Dave Dinsdale Breakthrough Act *Winner – Hannah Silvester *Runner up – Daniel Nicholas Best New Act *Winner – Tom Christian and Josh Pugh (joint winners) *Runner up – Lucy Thompson Best Comedy Club *Winner –

The Glee Club The Glee Club is a chain of independent live stand-up comedy and live music venues in the UK. The first Glee Club was opened by Mark Tughan in Birmingham's Chinese Quarter in 1994,

*Runner up – CAN Comedy Best Open Mic Show *Winner – Fowl Humour *Runner up – The Holly Bush Outstanding Contribution *Winner – Roger Swift

References

External links

Midlands Comedy Awards official site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Midlands Comedy Awards British comedy and humour awards