BBC New Comedy Awards: 2024, Episode 1 - Midlands Heat: Leicester

TV stand-up
BBC One / BBC Three
2021 - 2024
28 episodes (4 series)

The BBC competition to find the best new stand-up comedians. Stars Mawaan Rizwan, Fern Brady, Josh Pugh and Babatunde Aléshé.

Due to return for 2025
Catch-up on 2024, Episode 7

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2024, Episode 1 - Midlands Heat: Leicester

BBC New Comedy Awards. Image shows left to right: Babatunde Aléshé, Darren Harriott, Holly Ludlow, Dane Buckley, Sharon Wanjohi, Kathy Rivett, Hasan Al-Habib, Sukh Ojla, Jack Rooke

Darren Harriott hosts the first heat of this year's series from Leicester's Y Theatre.

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The search brings the audience to Leicester, a city bursting with art, culture and diversity. The venue is the famous Y Theatre, a bustling live performance venue, which for one night only has been transformed into our very own comedy club.

The host for the evening is the Midlands' own ray of sunshine, Darren Harriott. The multi-award-winning stand-up comedian, writer and self-confessed fashion junkie kicks off the night with a bit of local banter before bringing on the five acts. Judging their performances is comedian, playwright and actor Sukh Kaur Ojla, who is joined by writer and creator of the Bafta award-winning comedy Big Boys, Jack Rooke. Completing the trio is the charismatic comic Babatunde Aleshe, who steps up as head judge for 2024.

It's not going to be easy to pick a winner from Dane Buckley, Kathy Rivett, Hasan Al-Habib, Sharon Wanjohi and Holly Ludlow, whose sets are jam-packed with jokes and cutting-edge material. But only one can go through to the grand final at Birmingham's prestigious Alexandra Theatre.