ONE OF the rising highlights of the town’s yearly calendar is returning to venues across Reading this weekend.
Reading Comedy Festival is bringing household names and fresh acts alike to the stage for stand-up, sketches, improv, and all-out comedy competitions across four days, sponsored by Penta Hotels.
Friday, May 16, will see the festival begin in earnest with the Reading New Comedian of the Year competition.
The Purple Turtle will welcome eight box-fresh comics battling it out to take the top spot, which will win them a paid spot with Mates Rates Comedy and a cash prize.
Selam Amare is a cultural producer, comedian, and champion of migrant stories in London.
As part of Counterpoints Arts, she produces the groundbreaking No Direction Home comedy series, giving new voices a chance to shine—and proving that comedy can cross borders without needing a passport.
One of Selam’s projects Azmari Bet, a vibrant platform celebrating Ethiopian music, food, and performance.
From stand-up to standing up for her roots, Selam’s comedy is as rich and layered as an Ethiopian coffee ceremony—bold, warm, and guaranteed to keep you coming back for more.
She was awarded the winning spot at TimeOut x Nando’s Extra Hot Comedy Club Competition 2025 with Munya Chawawa, and placed as a finalist in the Newcomer LoungesTV 2025 with Omid Djalili.
Lemn Sissay described her act as the “best crossover night of Habesha (Ethiopian/ Eritrean) contemporary culture in the UK.”
Josh Taylor brings a laid-back delivery that leaves audiences both amused and concerned, Josh has beaten the gong at major shows by tackling inane questions no one asked and offering absurd answers no one needed.
Dominic Fraser has been runner-up at Backyard Comedy Knockout, and his show ‘Dominic Fraser: Super Indie Comic’ will be at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival later this year.
Vyome Singh said that his comedy started as an excercise to belong to the UK culture–as an immigrant he understood laughter binds us all together.
He brings in his a style of comedy inspired by existential philosophy and heritage, and is thrilled to perform for the first time in Reading.
Abbie Edwards was named runner-up at Leicester Square New Comedian of the Year last year, and was nominated for the BBC Introducing Radio 4 Comedy Award and her stand up has been broadcast on BBC Radio 4 Extra and BBC Radio Solent.
Her style sees her overshare about “everything from losing her virginity in her mid-20s to accidentally raising herself religious.”
Caroline Madds is described as an East Midlander, TK Maxx addict, and founder of the bottom of bottomless brunch.
Her sharp and playful comedy has been featured on BBC Radio 4 and landed her in the finals of So You Think You’re Funny?, Bath New Act, and New Act of the Year Competitions.
Dean Dixon’s “dark, daft and dangerously relatable” style blends sharp storytelling with dry, self-deprecating wit to explore relationships, masculinity, and cultural chaos — all from the perspective of a man who seems permanently one step behind what’s going on.
From Albanian girlfriends to stolen deodorant, his material turns real-life awkwardness into “cleverly crafted absurdity.”
He says of his act: “[It combines] storytelling with consistent twist and turns, misleading the audience and often making jokes at my own expense.
“I grew up in a small town in the north, making fun of myself gave me thick skin for when I’m with my mates, or me Mam.”
Aayush Rathi says his colleagues describe him as cheeky “because he has 2 cheeks and tongue beneath them.”
His stand-up revolves around him as a person and his struggles with society, which are admittedly mostly self-curated.
He says last made real new friends four years ago “at a vaccination center” as he had to “meet them twice for his second shot… [he] needs new friends.”
He has won Big Belly Gong show twice and managed to ‘beat the blackout’ at UTC, Backyard Knockout in 2025.
Jesse Yanase is a Japanese stand-up comedian performing with a sumo outfit, bringing an “international flair” to the stage and sharing humorous insights from his cross-cultural experiences, while offering a unique comedic perspective.
Manraj Bahra is a 33 year old British-Asian comedian, based in London. He combines an unusual surgically impaired voice with a joke-heavy and occasionally dark set that touches on topics such as identity and relationships.
During his short career, he has been a BBC New Comedian of the Year Regional Finalist, Chortle Student Comedy Competition Semi-Finalist and Laughing Horse National Comedy Competition Semi-Finalist and has entertained audiences across the UK.
Reading New Comedian of the Year takes place at The Purple Turtle from 7.30pm on Friday, May 16.
Tickets, as well as full details of all of the shows on offer at the Reading Comedy Festival, are available via: thereadingcomedyfestival.co.uk
