Series
Melbourne International Comedy Festival reviews
With 600 shows and more than 140 stages, this year’s laugh-fest has started. And this is what our reviewers think of the shows.
- Comedy festival
- Arts
‘He kissed my boyfriend on the mouth’: The comedy festival’s best moments
One month and over 100 shows later, our team of reviewers has come together to pick out the best (and strangest) moments from this year’s comedy festival.
- Sonia Nair, Stephen A Russell, Hannah Francis, Vyshnavee Wijekumar, Tyson Wray, Mikey Cahill and Donna Demaio
- Comedy Festival
Having the last laugh: Comedy you should catch before it’s gone
As the comedy festival enters its final week, here’s a round-up of shows to see – including a trip to space and a valiant attempt at telling the entire history of Greek mythology.
- Sonia Nair, Hannah Francis, Cameron Woodhead, John Bailey, Vyshnavee Wijekumar, Tyson Wray, Mikey Cahill, Lefa Singleton Norton and Donna Demaio
- Latest Comedy Reviews
Comedy Festival delivering in spades
Sex ed, superheroes and saying goodbye to a beloved grandparent - these shows at the Melbourne International Comedy Festival have something for everyone. Here are the latest reviews.
- Sonia Nair, Stephen A Russell, John Bailey, Hannah Francis, Cameron Woodhead, Vyshnavee Wijekumar, Tyson Wray, Mikey Cahill, Lefa Singleton Norton and Donna Demaio
- Reviews
The comedy festival has kicked off – here’s a look at the opening weekend
From Jurassic Park through to impressions so good they’ll have you in stitches, the fun has started at the Melbourne International Comedy Festival for 2023.
- Stephen A Russell, John Bailey, Sonia Nair, Vyshnavee Wijekumar, Tyson Wray, Mikey Cahill, Lefa Singleton Norton and Donna Demaio
Double happiness: Gillian Cosgriff wins two Comedy Festival gongs
In true comedic style, the winner of the Melbourne International Comedy Festival’s major award described receiving the honour as “sort of like a nightmare”.
- Tyson Wray
This may be the best performance seen on Australian stages this year
With a show that skewers the “messy young woman” trope, the Australian performer has become a word-of-mouth phenomenon taking over the globe.
- Tyson Wray
I’m dying up here: The comedian turning terminal illness into laughs
Blake Pavey is not only dying, he’s drawing on death for his comedy.
- Nell Geraets
Cancel culture: Why comedy is an extreme sport in Modi’s India
Joking about religion or politics has always been sensitive in India. But under the current government, comics risk jail time for offending the wrong people.
- Max Walden
Nothing is off limits: Meet the fearless comic visiting Australia
Sakdiyah Ma’ruf, Indonesia’s first female Muslim stand-up performer, is set to make a splash at this year’s Melbourne International Comedy Festival.
- Michael Lallo
From comedy to politics and back: the woman Wil Anderson described as ‘the funniest non-famous comedian’
Mandy Nolan came close to an unlikely win at the last federal election. Now she’s turned it into a comedy show, but don’t rule out a second tilt at Canberra.
- Karl Quinn
Other series
Melbourne International Comedy Festival 2026
This year’s laugh fest has kicked off, with more than 2000 performers stepping up to the mic. Here, our writers take a closer look
- 10 stories
Hate of origin: Inside football’s most intense rivalry
Essendon and Hawthorn have hated each other for more than 40 years, from some old-fashioned thuggery and a fake drug scandal in the mid-80s to last year’s failed bid by the Hawks to poach the Bombers’ captain.
- 5 stories