From the Galway City Tribune – Tommy Tiernan and Dylan Moran are top of the bill at this year’s Galway Comedy Festival, which returns with a feast of mainly Irish talent at the end of October.

With 60 shows being staged across 17 venues, there are well over double the amount of tickets up for sale this year compared to last, when restrictions were still in place. Many of the faces will be familiar to Galway comedy aficionados.

“Yes, we have lots of big Irish names here,” agreed Festival Director Kevin Healy.

“It’s good to give Irish comedians the work and look after them first post pandemic. UK comics are extremely busy in the last year doing gigs that were cancelled and then new ones added.

“We’re delighted to have all the well-known Irish comedians. Kevin McAleer is experiencing a resurgence in his career following his role in Derry Girls and it’s great to see a gem like him being uncovered again.

“We also have the likes of Colin Geddes who would sell out the Belfast Arena all the time with a 5,000 capacity and Emma Doran, who is taking off big time after gigs in Liberty Hall and she’s added Vicar Street. Here we are in Galway cajoling them into tiny venues with 100 people.”

Tickets for headline gigs are €35, up from €33 last year, but the big weekend gigs with at least five performers have dropped in price from €30 to €25. There are many gigs for as little as a tenner.

“I wanted to keep it as affordable as possible. We need the rooms full – it’s not just for rich people,” he insisted.

The festival opens at Leisureland with Dylan Moran, declared by French newspaper Le Monde as “the greatest comedian, living or dead”, and his new show, We Got This. With the previously announced Tuesday show now sold out, Friday and Saturday shows have been added to the bill.

There are only a limited number of tickets still available for Tommy Tiernan’s return to stand-up for two nights of Tomfoolery, where he explores ideas on God, sex, and family.

The Sunday night Leisureland show will feature Scottish comedian Daniel Sloss, who will be joined onstage by some of his favourite comedy friends.

Mixed bill nights will see Reginald D Hunter, Barry Murphy, Ardal O’Hanlon, Deirdre O’Kane, Andrew Maxwell, Rich Hall, Paul Currie and Colin Murphy share the stage.

One of Kevin’s “favourite comics in the world”, Glenn Wool from Canada, will be performing a solo show in the Róisín Dublin on the Wednesday. Other festival highlights include British mimic Bobby Davro, Rory O’Connor’s GAA stories and Australian-based Jimeoin.

The bill would not be complete without perennial favourites Comedy Club Crawls, Open Top Bus Tours, a comedy-themed quiz and comedy crossed with music in the Bulmers Light Festival Club. The Dirty Circus and Faulty Towers: The Dining Experience also return.

Tickets for the festival, which takes place from Tuesday, October 25 to bank holiday October 31, go on sale today, Friday, at 10am, on galwaycomedyfestival.ie.

(Photo: Comedian Dylan Moran).