Luke Richards wins Bath New Act 2024 competition
- 1st: Luke Richards
- 2nd: Vinny Shiu
- 3rd: Aisha Amanduri
The winner of the Bath New Act 2024 title is Luke Richards.
The competition featured over 100 long-listed contenders taking part in eleven heats during the Bath Comedy Festival, with the winner crowned at the grand final on 21st April at the city's Old Theatre Royal.
Originally from Liverpool, now living in London, Richards started stand-up in 2020. He says: "I'm amazed to have won considering who else was in the final, everyone was so good. Thanks Bath Comedy Festival for a brilliant night and a great competition."
Aside from the Bath Comedy New Act Of The Year Award title, he took home a unique trophy and will also receive guaranteed paid gigs in the forthcoming year.
Vinny Shiu was named runner-up, with third place going to Aisha Amanduri.
The other acts who qualified for this year's final were Monica Hsueh, Joe Kanczes, Maria Fedulova, Tony O'Hara, Caroline Madds, Ollie Fox, Danny Scott, Dan Coughtrey and Alex Milner. All the finalists were given a goody bag and praised for their high standard.
Each act had eight minutes on stage. The final was hosted by festival patron Arthur Smith and last year's winner, Mark Flynn, performed while the judges deliberated over their choice.
This year's judges were producer Alan Nixon, producer Mark Robson, comedy trainer and promoter Jill Edwards, Somerset-based promoter Trish Caller and festival director Nick Steel.
Nick Steel says: "All twelve aspiring comedians in this year's final were very strong indeed, and the top three were outstanding. We have definitely found some more future stars tonight, and it's been a delight to hold the event in this stunning building."