The Edinburgh Festival Fringe’s longest running stand-up showcase is back for its 19th year. Recognised as the place to catch the best new stand-ups on the Fringe, it has helped launched the careers of DAVE GORMAN, HARRY HILL, RUSSELL HOWARD, MARK LAMARR, STEWART LEE, SIMON MUNNERY, AL MURRAY and ROSS NOBLE.
This year The Comedy Zone once again presents four of the freshest talents on the circuit. Get ready for 2009’s line-up which stars: JEN BRISTER (BBC 6 Music), ED GAMBLE (The Ray Peacock Podcast), CHRIS RAMSEY (Leicester Mercury Comedian of the Year 2009 nominee) and GARETH RICHARDS (Frank Skinner’s Absolute Radio Show).
ends
What the press has said about The Comedy Zone:
“The Fringe’s leading stand-up showcase.”
The Times
“Comedy’s finest new additions.”
The Observer
LISTINGS INFORMATION
Venue: Pleasance Cabaret Bar
Date: 5th - 31st August
Time: 22:45
Box Office: 0131 556 6550
For more information and press tickets, please contact: Jo Cross, Ben Nolan, Jenny Stewart or Dan Lloyd. Tel: 08700 70 50 50 [Edinburgh office] or 020 7598 7222 [London office]. Email: joc@avalonuk.com, benn@avalonuk.com, jenny.stewart@avalonuk.com or danl@avalonuk.com
BIOGRAPHIES
JEN BRISTER
Having reached the semi-finals of both the BBC New Comedy Awards and the Wilkinson Sword Comedy Competition JEN BRISTER is a well-known face on London’s sketch circuit and a founding member of the Loose Connection group. JEN took her debut one woman show Me, My Mum & I on national tour culminating in a successful run at 2006’s Edinburgh Fringe Festival, which she performed at the same time as participating in a series of live improvisations at the Underbelly. Last year JEN starred in and co-wrote the critically acclaimed Reception, alongside CLARE WARDE. A regular performer at some of the country’s top comedy venues, JEN recently presented the Weekend Overnight and Weekend Breakfast shows on BBC 6 Music and starred in RUSSELL BRAND’S Cloud Cuckoo Land (BBC Radio 2).
ED GAMBLE
ED GAMBLE, Revels Student Comedy Awards and The Laughing Horse Big, Big, Big New Act Competition finalist is a rising star on the stand-up circuit. He regularly writes and performs alongside RAY PEACOCK and RAJI JAMES on the Chortle sponsored Peacock and Gamble Podcast, available on iTunes. He has also written, performed and directed with the Durham Revue since 2004 and in 2008 co-wrote and directed Devils, Cambridge Footlights Edinburgh Festival show.
GARETH RICHARDS
GARETH RICHARDS’ brand of observational comedy has made him a hotly tipped act on the circuit. In 2008 he was nominated for the Leicester Mercury Comedian of the Year Award, and later won a place as part of the Comedy Reserve, the Edinburgh Festival showcase run by the Pleasance. Previously he was a finalist in the Hackney Empire New Act of the Year 2007 competition, and a runner-up in both the final of You Must Be Joking (Newbury Comedy Festival), and the Amused Moose Laugh-Off, held at the Edinburgh
Festival. He can be heard every Saturday morning from 8am on Frank Skinner’s Absolute Radio Show.
CHRIS RAMSEY
CHRIS RAMSEY, finalist in the 2008 Chortle Student Comedy Awards and 2009 Leicester Mercury Comedian of the Year nominee, has become one of the most highly sought acts on the UK circuit since making his debut in 2007. He has compered some of the biggest clubs in the UK including The Frog & Bucket, Opus, Leeds Hi-Fi, Hilarity Bites, Baby Blue and Last Laugh, in addition to supporting on tour both RUSSELL KANE
and STEPHEN K. AMOS. Chris has provided live warm up for Channel 4’s Gok Wan Road Show.
AVALON PROMOTIONS
Avalon Promotions Limited is one of the leading promoters of live comedy in the UK. Productions include: NEWMAN & BADDIEL in the first comedy show ever to be staged at Wembley Arena; FRANK SKINNER’s record-breaking performance to an audience of 6,000 at the Battersea Power Station; Jerry Springer - The Opera at the National Theatre, at the Cambridge Theatre in London’s West End, on national tour and at New York’s Carnegie Hall; HARRY HILL at the Palace and Dominion Theatres in London; and Dave Gorman’s Googlewhack Adventure at the Sydney Opera House, at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, on national tour and at the Village Theatre, New York (nominated for Drama Desk Award 2004).
The last 12 months has seen Avalon Promotions: present multi-award winning comics JENNY ECLAIR, RICHARD HERRING, RUSSELL HOWARD and FRANK SKINNER on sell-out runs; produce AL MURRAY, THE PUB LANDLORD live at the O2, and RUSSELL HOWARD at Wembley Arena; introduce some of the fastest-rising stars in comedy such as RUSSELL KANE, KRISTEN SCHAAL & KURT BRAUNOHLER and ISY SUTTIE; produce stage shows, such as Frank Skinner’s Credit Crunch Cabaret and Grumpy Old Women Live, which has toured the UK three times and performed a highly successful run in Australia; and present 23 acts at the Edinburgh Festival, where it has promoted a total of five Perrier Award winners and 17 Perrier Award/if.comedy Award nominees in just 20 years.
