Raw Comedy, stylised as RAW Comedy, is an Australian annual competition for emerging stand-up comedians held by Melbourne International Comedy Festival.
| RAW Comedy | |
|---|---|
| Awarded for | Stand-up comedy |
| Date | 1996 |
| Country | Australia |
| Website | comedyfestival |
History and description
editThe Raw Comedy competition was established at the Melbourne International Comedy Festival in 1996.[1] In 2011, there were 1,100 contestants.[2]
The competition is supported by national youth radio station Triple J. As of 2024[update] the competition attracts around 1,000 entrants annually from all over Australia, and is the largest open-mic comedy competition in the country.[3]
A series of heats take place in major Australian cities through January, February and March.[4] State semi-finals and finals are held in the state capitals in March. Judges select the most impressive state-finalist/s to compete at the Raw Comedy grand finale, which held as part of the Melbourne International Comedy Festival at the Melbourne Town Hall in April and is televised later in June/July of the same year.[citation needed]
The winner of Raw Comedy is sent to the So You Think You're Funny competition at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe. Three Raw Comedy winners (Drew Rokos, Nick Sun, and Demi Lardner) have gone on to win So You Think You're Funny.[citation needed][when?]
Past winners and finalists
edit| Year | Winner(s) | Other finalists |
|---|---|---|
| 1996 | Anthony Menchetti (WA)[5][6] |
|
| 1997 | Subby Valentine (NSW) |
|
| 1998 | Chris Franklin (NSW) |
|
| 1999 | Chris Wainhouse (Qld) |
|
| 2000 | Drew Rokos (Vic) |
|
| 2001 | Emily O'Loughlin (SA) |
|
| 2002 | Dave Elvins (NSW) |
|
| 2003 | Nelly Thomas (Vic) Steve Sheehan (SA) |
|
| 2004 | Nick Sun (NSW) |
|
| 2005 | Josh Thomas (Qld) |
|
| 2006 | Hannah Gadsby (SA) |
|
| 2007 | Jonathan Schuster (Vic) |
|
| 2008 | Neil Sinclair (Vic) |
|
| 2009 | Cassie Workman (WA) |
|
| 2010 | Luke Heggie (NSW)[7] |
|
| 2011 | Dayne Rathbone (Vic)[8] |
|
| 2012 | Lessons with Luis (Vic)[9] |
|
| 2013 | Demi Lardner (SA)[10] |
|
| 2014 | Matt Stewart (Vic)[11] |
|
| 2015 | Angus Gordon (Qld)[12] |
|
| 2016 | Danielle Walker (VIC) |
|
| 2017 | Zack Dyer (VIC) |
|
| 2018 | Bec Melrose (NSW) |
|
| 2019 | Fady Kassab (NSW) |
|
| 2021 | Prue Blake (VIC) |
|
| 2022 | Alexandra Hudson (NSW) and Bron Lewis (QLD) |
|
| 2023 | Henry Yan (VIC) |
|
| 2024 | Omar Gadd (NT) |
|
References
edit- ^ "Melbourne International Comedy Festival". Melbourne International Comedy Festival. Retrieved 9 September 2024.
- ^ Platt, Craig (11 April 2011). "Raw Comedy won by awkward freak". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 13 April 2015.
- ^ "About RAW Comedy". RAW Comedy. Retrieved 25 June 2024.
- ^ "2008 Raw Comedy Competition". PerthNow. 24 January 2008. Archived from the original on 31 March 2008.
- ^ "Sleek Geeks: Adam Spencer". ABC Online.
- ^ "My big break". The Daily Telegraph. 30 August 2008. p. 59.
- ^ "Luke Heggie Wins National Comedy Title". Australian Stage. 12 April 2010. Retrieved 5 June 2015.
- ^ Platt, Craig (11 April 2011). "Raw Comedy won by awkward freak". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 5 June 2015.
- ^ Platt, Craig (15 April 2012). "Raw Comedy and the rise of awkwardness". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 5 June 2015.
- ^ "Demi Lardner wins Raw Comedy". The Age. 15 April 2013. Retrieved 5 June 2015.
- ^ Taras, Nick (14 April 2014). "Review: Raw comedy up-and-comers inventive and entertaining". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 5 June 2015.
- ^ Platt, Craig (13 April 2015). "Raw Comedy 2015 winner: Angus Gordon wins national comedy competition". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 5 June 2015.