Our Arts Council England Project
The Live Comedy Association (LCA) has been awarded £45,000 of Arts Council England funding to support a programme of events and activities that will help the organisation continue its work to get live comedy recognised as an essential part of the creative industries. The project will run from October 2026 until July 2027 and will be delivered in partnership with organisations including Soho Theatre, Komedia Bath, the Centre for Comedy Studies Research, the Music Venue Trust, and the Night Time Industries Association.
If you'd like to find out more or get involved in any of the activities, drop us an email at hello@livecomedyassociation.co.uk
The project will include:
More member events
The LCA has run many events for members over the last six years. These have covered networking, the work of the LCA and specific topics such as how to get funding, how to film your comedy shows and how to build a social media community. The events have been held both online and in person. The funding from Arts Council England will allow us to deliver more of them, and they will be promoted to members via the LCA newsletter.
Live Comedy Day: 1 April 2027
The LCA set up Live Comedy Day as an annual national celebration of live comedy. On 1 April 2026, live comedy took over the UK. Across 65 venues – from The Yellow Book in Brighton (30 seats, hosted by the "incredible, insatiable and incorrigible" Leslie Bloom) to the Royal Albert Hall, where Vir Das played to 3,500 – audiences turned out to celebrate the art form that works best in the room.
More than 120 comedians performed, including John Bishop, James Acaster, Zoe Lyons and Shappi Khorsandi, delivering more than 5,850 minutes of live comedy, all organised by some amazing promoters and producers. From Edinburgh in the north to Plymouth in the south, venues including the Comedy Store (London), the London Palladium, the Glee Club (Birmingham and Glasgow) and the Frog & Bucket (Manchester) helped create a nationwide moment for live comedy.
The day was featured on every BBC local radio station, as well as on The One Show and BBC Radio 4.
As one promoter put it: "Thank you for doing this and bringing extra light to grassroots comedy." With support from Arts Council England, Live Comedy Day will return on 1 April 2027.
Live Comedy Survey and Report
The LCA will continue to work with the Centre for Comedy Studies Research (Brunel University London) and British Comedy Guide to carry out the 2026 live comedy sector survey and produce the annual report, which will be published in early 2027.
LCA Regional Hub pilot programme
A growing share of power, influence and public money, including funding for the creative industries, is now being allocated through regional mayors rather than central government. We will pilot three new LCA regional hubs and, with support from local partners, use the results of the live comedy sector survey to raise the profile of live comedy with mayors in the North West, the South West and London, and lobby for more support.
UK Live Comedy Map
We will develop a public map and database of comedy venues, festivals and organisations to:
improve understanding of regional provision
identify underserved areas
support future advocacy and research
Development strategy for the LCA
We will work with the Music Venue Trust to:
produce a long-term development plan
review our organisational structure and legal status
explore future income streams and sustainability models
reduce our reliance on public funding