Today on the show, we speak to Lauren Bok about The First Five, a way for the general public to give stand-up a crack during the festival. 5pm Thursday through Sunday afternoons until Saturday April 12. Lauren also appears in Radio Variety Hour, 8pm tonight and tomorrow at Comedy on Collins.
In today’s MICF Daily News:
Special Event: The Deadly Funny National Grand Final and Showcase takes place today at the Town Hall. The Grand Final will see $2,000 awarded to the best ingenious comedian. Kevin Kropinyeri will host, with guest performances from Sean Choolburra, Shiralee Hood, and Andrew Saunders. Deadly Funny takes place at 3pm today, tickets from Ticketmaster.
Daytime: Plenty of stuff to see in the day time at the festival today.
The Op Shop Tour starts nice and early at 9.30am, meet at the Town Hall.
Faulty Towers: The Dining Experience will be held at The Aegean Restaurant in Fitzroy, 1pm and 7pm.
At the Downstairs Lounge at The Swanston Hotel, Tres Miserables create a bite-sized musical, 1pm and 9pm.
Three shows this afternoon at the Exford. Huggers Family Friendly Comedy & Cabaret at noon, Ashes: The Comedy Showdown at 1.30pm, then The Best of British at 3.30pm.
Xavier Toby’s comedy walking tour 2014: When We Were Idiots will be held at 3pm and 8pm by the Burke & Wills Statue at the City Square.
Drama With A Difference Presents Moving Up, 4pm and 8pm today at The Theatre Husk in Northcote.
Also at 4pm, Bryce Halliday at Ruby’s Music Room, Huw Joseph and the Immoral Support Band at The Toff in Town, The Sound of Bobby at the Imperial Hotel, and Who’s Your Daddy at the Elephant and Wheelbarrow.
Today marks the first of three comedy art lectures from Hannah Gadsby. See her today looking at Australian Art, 4.30pm at the National Gallery of Victoria. Limited tickets on the door.
And ending the afternoon of comedy – Pop Mashup: Happy Birthday Doctor!, 5pm at the Butterfly Club, and Simon Bosco’s Sadgasm, 5.30pm at Caz Reitops Dirty Secrets in Collingwood.
Family Comedy: If you’re a kid, a mum or a dad, or just young at heart, here’s some shows for you to take in today:
The Luck Child occupies the Spiegeltent, 10am; with Monski Mouse following at 11.30am.
At the Arts Centre, The 13-Storey Treehouse takes place at 10am, noon, and 3.30pm.
The (very) Big Laugh Out is on all day at the City and Federation Squares. Today at the City Square Pitch: Sivouplait at 11.30am, and Sharon from Canada at 12.30pm. Then at 5pm Becky Hoops hosts the big show at Federation Square with Sivouplait, Ong-als in Babbling Comedy, Sharon from Canada, and The Chipolatas. Entry is free.
The Flying Bookworm Theatre Company present Three Silly Stories, 12.30pm at the Town Hall.
Comedy Club for Kids kickstarts it’s festival run at 1pm.
At 2pm, The Underlads reveal The Great Magic-Off in the Town Hall.
And 3.30pmpm sees Improvilicious perform family friendly impro at the Town Hall.
Podcasts: Steele Saunders’ I Love Green Guide Letters is sold out, so try David Tulk and Jamie McCarney in Full of It: The True or False Game Show to the Exford Hotel’s stage, 5pm today.
John Safran makes his festival return tonight with Murder in Mississippi, a talk about his book of the same name. 6pm tonight at the Comedy Theatre.
Late Night: Political Asylum holds a one-off Late Night Riot! featuring Toby Halligan, Matthew Kenneally and special guests talking all things politics and comedy. 11pm tonight at the Town Hall.
The Festival Club will encompass an extra hour tonight due to daylight savings ending. Another Comedy Up Late will be taped, kicking off at 11:15 at the Hi-Fi Bar.
Also on late: Late Night Impro, The Comedy Confessional, Miss Itchy, and Sitcom Theme Song Singalong and Trivia. For a full list of the day’s shows, check the Comedy Festival website.
