Jongleurs comedy clubs set for massive expansion
Jongleurs, the live comedy chain, announced today they are investing £2m to expand their club network across Britain.
The brand has got a new partner in the form of investment company Ingenious Media who are providing a £2 million 'war chest' to fund expansion plans.
Jongleurs already have clubs in London's Covent Garden, Hammersmith, Croydon, Portsmouth and Glasgow, with a franchise operating in Nottingham too. Founder Maria Kempinska plans to open two more franchises imminently - in Norwich and Bristol - then three more in Newcastle, Leeds and Leicester early next year. The group also plans to put on 250 live Jongleurs comedy shows at 80 theatres across Britain in 2011, plus events at music festivals throughout next summer. There are also plans for a Jongleurs comedy DVD to be released next year.
The company says "Jongleurs will guarantee a laugh a minute nationwide as we plan to stage 250 live shows, open a swathe of new clubs, and even stage fun-a-thon laugh-ins at all of next year's major music festivals like Glastonbury and the V Festival. As the chain that started the careers of comics like Michael McIntyre, Lee Evans, Rhod Gilbert and Frank Skinner we are determined to unearth yet more comedy gold as we undertake a search to discover brand new comic talent."
Founder Maria Kempinska invented the concept of High Street comedy clubs back in 1983, with the first one located in Battersea. Ten years ago the chain was sold to Regent Inns but in October 2009 the leisure chain went into administration. Intertain UK bought the clubs from Regent Inns but chose to re-open them under a new brand called 'Highlight'. As a result, the Jongleurs brand has reverted back to Kempinska, and the first new Jongleurs opened in Hammersmith a month after the collapse.
Talking about the new investment deal, Maria Kempinska comments: "We've always led the field in finding and promoting new talent. Comedians like Eddie Izzard, Stephen Fry and Rory Bremner didn't just magically appear, they were discovered and learned their craft in Jongleurs. Now as part of this huge expansion in the company, we're going out to find the next generation of comedy talent. It will be hard work but we'll definitely have a laugh doing it! We've done it before with everyone from Michael McIntyre to Lee to Frank and so on, now we'll do it again."
There are now over 1,800 comics on Jongleurs books - "if they're funny, and they want a career as stand-up comics, they know there's only one place to start and that's Jongleurs" says Maria. "Our comics will be touring non-stop next year, we're going to bring the best talent to a town near you. Britain will have never seen so much comedy on offer, so many places to go to for a really good laugh."
Paul Bedford, Investment Director at Ingenious, commented: "We are delighted to be partnering up with Jongleurs and are excited to be supporting the expansion of the Jongleurs brand across the UK with this investment. We are positive that the new franchises and live shows will build on the success shown by Jongleurs comedy clubs to date."