Preview: Barnard Castle Comedy Festival 2015

Barnard Castle welcomes its first ever comedy festival to the town next week with a host of big stars on the bill.

TV comedian Mark Watson and Radio 4 star Alex Horne headline the festival at The Witham arts centre on Saturday 18 July, with the likes of Jo Caulfield, Tony Law, Lost Voice Guy and Lee Kyle also set to appear.

The festival, organised by Teesdale resident and Funny Way To Be Comedy Club promoter Peter Dixon, kicks off at 12pm and runs until 10.30pm with shows throughout the day.

Some comedians – like Watson, Law and Caulfield – will present work-in-progress versions of their new shows ahead of next month’s Edinburgh Festival, while Horne will present a two-hour show, the Edinburgh Comedy Award-nominated Monsieur Butterfly.

Festival Director Peter Dixon said: “We can’t wait to welcome six of the world’s best stand-ups to Teesdale.

“This really will be a special day for Barnard Castle; there’s a huge buzz around the town about the line-up and rightly so.

“We’re incredibly proud of the line-up we’ve put together.”

Day tickets for the festival are £45 but individual tickets are now available online or at The Witham. Giggle Beats readers can also get a special 30% discount on tickets using voucher code ‘giggle’.

Alex Horne’s show is priced £15; Mark Watson is £12; Jo Caulfield is £6; Tony Law is £6; Lost Voice Guy is £5; and Lee Kyle’s family-friendly Gunge Show is £5 (adults go free with accompanied children).

For more details on the festival, visit barnardcastlecomedy.com.