According to an anonymous snap survey, the majority of those who work in the UK live comedy sector are optimistic about the future. Of the almost 200 people who participated, 66% shared this optimism, however, the survey also identifies some nervousness around the future in terms of further changes which will impact on the sector.
The survey was sent to a cross-section of comedians, promoters, producers, and agents from around the UK. 65% of people who responded identified as comedians, 20% as promoters (including comedy clubs, venues, and tours), nine percent as people who work in media, and six percent as agents or managers.
60% of people who responded anticipate a ticket price increase, whilst total ticket income will remain the same, suggesting that fewer people will be attending live comedy shows over the next three to five years. 62% of people agree that the pace of change will continue in the future and that everyone working in the sector will need to adapt to these changes.
Leicester Comedy Festival founder and producer Geoff Rowe, who wrote and distributed the survey said: “I was literally sat at home working in my office and I was beginning to think about what the future looks like for live comedy. The last two years or so have been really hard and there are loads of conversations going on about the ongoing impact of Covid, but also the impact of online content, and the cost of living crisis in the UK. I thought a short snap survey might be really useful to see what others working in the sector are thinking. I appreciate the issues raised in the survey are complicated, and this is just one way of finding out what people think, but I hope the results might be interesting and useful to others.”
50% of people thought income from places such as donations, funding, and Patreon schemes will increase and 75% of people thought diversity in live comedy will continue to expand and develop. One participant noted: “I think the way younger people are consuming comedy & what they class as comedy is increasingly looking less & less like the current model of comedy clubs, theatre shows & festivals.”
Interestingly, only 50% of those who participated in the survey think online content is vital to the sector with 45% of people thinking online content is just a “bonus”, one person who took the survey commented: “I hope live comedy wins in the battle with online content”. In addition, only 11% think online content has to be free to the audience, and 74% thought people will pay for content as long as they value what is being produced.
Rather than the pandemic, the cost of living was cited as being the biggest current threat, with over 84% of people choosing this as a factor. Only five percent thought cancel culture was a factor and one percent thought lack of media coverage was a factor.
Geoff is encouraging people to get in touch if they want a copy of the full survey report, or would like to discuss future snap surveys for the live comedy industry. He said “I’ve found this survey really useful to see what others working in live comedy think. If it’s useful, I’m personally happy to do more in the future so let me know if that would help.”
As another survey participant noted: “It’ll (live comedy) always change. That’s the fun of it. Sometimes it’ll be a cycle, sometimes it’ll be peaks and troughs. But it’ll always change. Which is good.”
