MEET 2025 STAGE AWARD FINALIST: MADELEINE BRETTINGHAM
Madeleine is a writer-turned-performer who has recently scooped a string of competition wins including the prestigious So You Think You’re Funny 2025. She’s been praised for her “distinctive worldview” (Chortle), “tight and gag-packed” writing (Bruce Dessau), and a “knack for blending offbeat observations with pacey, unexpected punchlines” (The List). She lives in London.
MEET 2025 STAGE AWARD FINALIST: SAMANTHA DAY
Samantha’s comedy career kicked off about six years ago, after three decades as an accountant and single mum. Now she’s been freed from the city, she’s really hit her stride, as a truly original act who’s winning awards and progressing fast on the circuit.
MEET 2025 STAGE AWARD FINALIST: KATE HAMMER
Kate Hammer is an anemic Canadian comedian and writer living in Glasgow, and is a regular host and weekend performer at clubs in Scotland. She has performed on Just for Laughs, Latitude Festival, Kelburn Garden Party, Late N Live, PopMontreal, and is a finalist for the Funny Women competition 2025, as well as being a semi-finalist for the 2022LGBTQ and Leicester Square New Comedian of the Year competitions. She is the resident host and co-producer of the queer comedy show All Mouth and has opened for Sam Lake and Mark Nelson. Kate is high energy, wears high-waisted trousers, and always stays true to her goat farming heritage.
The Biggest Challenge: Standing Up at the Fringe
Last week at the Edinburgh Fringe, we showcased nine amazing business women in The Glitter Challenge. They performed five minutes of live stand-up comedy for the first time in their lives at the world’s largest arts festival.
Q&A : Florence Lace-Evans, Yes, We’re Related.
I’m Florence Lace-Evans, an actor, writer and producer. I trained at The Royal Central School of Speech and Drama, and was part of Soho Theatre Labs 2024. My dark comedy ‘Yes, We’re Related’ was awarded the Keep It Fringe Fund 2024, and listed in the Top 100 Trending Shows of the Edinburgh Fringe (Fringe Biscuit). We transferred to The Other Palace Theatre London, and will be published by CNC Books later this year.
Q&A : Emma Rebaldi-Taylor, NewsRevue
As Artistic Director and Producer of NewsRevue since 2001, I’ve worn just about every hat in the business—writer, performer, director, casting director, script editor—and this year marks my 25th with the show. I also wrote The Pocket Producer to help people put on a show in Edinburgh. Along the way, I’ve picked up some lovely accolades: Outstanding Achievement Awards from IARA, Fringe Report, and London Pub Theatres, plus a Guinness World Record for the Longest Running Live Comedy Show, and nominations from Whatsonstage and The Offies.
