The past few days in the Funny Women office.. best summed up by an impressionist painting
No room for jokes here. This has been tough. Really tough. Particularly this year. With more than 350 entrants to see (plus a waiting list for the first time EVER!) we knew it would never be easy. Not least with the varying degrees in standard of travel taverns, dubious ‘hotel’ rooms, laboriously long car journeys and Cath Kidston paraphernalia we’ve subjected ourselves to in our quest to find this year’s funniest star.
It’s all been worth it though. From the Hay Festival, to Hull, to Latitude, Liverpool and Edinburgh, you have kept us rollicking in the aisles with mirth and delight, revelling in the increasingly high standard of acts we’ve witnessed. In particular, we have seen a far higher number of variety acts this year, which has prompted our inaugural Funny Women Variety Award. So we would like to say a big THANK YOU to everyone!
Of course – stern Tyra Banks face here – you can’t all be winners and we have had to employ some ruthlessness in deciding who should make it onto the shortlist, without the ferocity of Tyra’s eyebrows we hope. However, we were compelled to compile a ONE TO WATCH list detailing acts that particularly impressed us and have a great deal of potential.
Whether you have or haven’t made it onto either list, do keep at it. There’s one thing that’s struck me throughout this competition and our recent trip to Edinburgh – there may be shortlists.. but also.. as many established comics will tell you, there are no shortcuts in this industry; dieing on stage is often an inevitable part of the process but comedy is a continual learning curve and one that is well worth the journey of self discovery.
