International Comedy Festival returns returns to Aberdeen
It's the city's first comedy festival in three years
11 days of comedy begins today in Aberdeen as the city's International Comedy Festival returns for the first time in three years.
Headliners include Jack Dee, Milton Jones, Daniel Sloss and Harriet Kemsey.
Irish funnyman David O'Doherty is opening the festival that he closed in 2018.
Commenting on his return he said: "I can’t believe it’s been four years since I closed the Aberdeen Comedy Festival and invited the entire audience to the pub around the corner for a post festival drink. “See you all soon!” I said as I left.
"To say it has been an up and downy four years since would be disrespectful to rollercoasters.
"But I am SO happy to be coming back to the most beautiful theatre (the Tivoli) in Scotland, this time to open the festival."
Multi-award winning stand-up, podcaster and author Kai Humphries is performing at Union Kirk, he said: "My material is all quite mischievous, I’m always pushing the boundaries and seeing what I can get away with.
"Audiences can expect to come and have a laugh from the beginning to the end of my show.
"It’s a show of two halves with quite a large section on growing up in the North-East on a council estate in the 80s and 90s, so it’s kind of nostalgic of the time when we would play outside and hang around on the streets. "The second half of the show is the juxtaposition of what my life is now, a middle class tourist with a cavapoo dog.
"I don’t even recognise myself anymore, so gentrified!"
Shona Byrne, Festival Manager told us what to expect from the festival this year: "Aberdeen is a small city with a big heart and this October for 11 days comedy will take centre stage at over 20 city centre venues providing locals and visitors with so many reasons to be cheerful.
"We’ve crammed comedy into as many corners of the city centre as possible with the aim being to bring people out to experience and enjoy all the city has to offer.
"Audiences will find they can have a laugh from as little as £7 and we are thrilled to bring some hotly tipped rising stars to the city for the first time as part of this year’s festival line up.
"We can’t wait to open the festival doors this week, there are shows to suit all tastes and we really look forward to seeing folk lose themselves in laughter."